Song of the Sun and Stars
by LawKaynn
Summary: Having a magical princess as a best friend is trouble enough, but when the whole gang has their own powers, things get a little wild and many adventures await them. But how long can their fun last when there's an unknown threat yearning for their end? AU where Marco and the others get some magical upgrades. Also feat. Kelly and Hekapoo, plus OCs
1. The First of many

**Okay so I haven't really been here that long so I dont really know much about what's what, so please be gentle. And uhhhhhh this is gonna the first story I write, this is gonna be an AU based on an idea that kept me up a few nights ago. So I hope you enjoy!**

 **Prologue:**

 **The first of many**

It was the end of the day at good ol' Echo creek, the sun's rays were just dipping down the horizon signaling the end of the day.

However one person was deep in thought.

" _sigh_... another boring day has ended" Marco said to himself

"Even Janna was quiet for most of the day, she didn't even steal anything from me! Everybody just seems so tired huh." he lazilysaid.

 _With the exemption Jackie of course_ , _she's just naturally cool'_ he happily thought to himself.

And just then his phone rang, effectively startling the poor boy out of his thoughts.

"Huh?" he said, lazily looking at the bright pop-up saying:

 _'Marco ur not at the park r u?'_ it was a message from Janna.

 _'ugh no I'm at home right now, why?'_ he replied

 _'no reason...'_ was the reply, so obviously something was up, he thought to himself

 _'what did you this time?'_ it took a few seconds for the next reply to come in

 _'what!? look Marco I may be a (really hot) witch but I'm not reckless and stupid okay! I didn't do anything today.'_ Janna replied.

 _'okay, okay fine I'm sorry. But why'd you ask if I was at the park anyway?'_ Marco asked

 _'Oh, yeah! Well I saw a huge flaming portal open up and this demon dog thing jumped out! It's torching the park right now'_ she replied.

And sure enough a huge plume of smoke was rising in the general direction of the park.

Marco remembered that his parents went out on a date today, and said that they might stop by the park before going home so he should just have dinner without them.

Fearing for his parents' lives he takes his signature red hoodie, that was folded neatly on his bed and rushed out of his house.

Completly forgeting about his phone still on his desk, with a new message from his dad popping up and saying:

 _'mijo! your mother and I decided to stop by Brita's tacos instead of the park, do you want anything my son?'_

Running as fast as his legs can carry him, which was surprisingly fast thanks to his daily training with karate, thoughts of his parents swarmed his mind, worried about their safety.

When he finally got to the park, he saw that janna was indeed telling the truth, and that a huge three eyed dog with the horns of a bull was wrecking mayhem on the park.

Worried about his parents, he rushed past the raging hell hound desperatly looking for any sign of his parents, unbeknownst to him, his parents were currently enjoying their date.

Forgetting about the hell hound was a bad idea as his shouting seems to have attracted its attention and it was getting ready to maul the unsuspecting teen in the back.

Marco being used to fights, felt a tingling at his back and immidiately rolled out of the way, dodging the horns by a fraction of an inch.

At first panic took over him, but looking into the hounds pitch black obsidian colored body and its magma red eyes it was soon replaced fear, pure, instinctual and primal fear for his life, and he smiled.

"Ha, looks like today isnt gonna be boring after all" he said out loud as he took a fighting stance staring down the beast, he briefly remembered something he read in one of Janna's witchy books

 _'Most the demons and denizens of hell have protuding horns on their head, whether this was a sign of power or just simple biology is unknown, however what is known is that those who possess horns have a weakness at its base where it meets their skulls.'_

"Huh, looks like all knowledge really is good knowledge, even seemingly useless ones like that" he said out loud.

Taking off his hoodie, he dons a matador's stance taunting the beast with a smirk, and it happily obliged, rushing forward like a charging bull only to be nimbly dodged by a laughing Marco, taunting him even further.

Getting mad now the beast's muzzle begins glowing and with an unearthly roar it shot a blast of fire at the annoying human.

Thinking on his feet, Marco rolls out of the way. And getting up only to be thrown back by the force of its charge, the damned thing used its fire attack as a feint, gritting his teeth Marco got up and took up his matador pose again.

"Olé" he said with another cocky smirk.

Growling at the fact that a puny human managed to get up after getting hit, he began charging up another fire attack and fired, but this time Marco was ready, and he sure as heck wasn't gonna let himself get hit with the same attck twice, using the momentum of his roll he spun around while still low on the ground and connected with a rising reverse heel strike, hitting its weakness head on and knocking it back to some trees. Smiling like lunatic he got up and shouted

"Yeah! that was so awesooo..." he was shouting.

Only to be frozen in a giant blue crystal.

"Yeah I got him!" said a strange man with a cape and what appears to be a crystal with one eye in it in the place of his head,

"You idiot! That wasn't the target!" said... his snake hands? ok then.

"Quick you gotta unfreeze him before they show up and see this mess" said his left snake, I mean hand, snake-hand?

"Before we see what!?" said some unknown voice, at this the crystal headed man straighted up

"No-nothing!" he said as he tried(and failed) to hide the crystalized boy behind him.

And stepping out of a blue portal was the owner of the unknown voice a pale looking lady wearing a yellow ball gown, she had long dark crimson hair with a fringe covering her right eye, and her left eye was a sparkling shade of amber oh and she has horns and a soft ever burning flame floating above her head.

And following her out of the portal was what could only be described as a Queen, she wore a beautiful gown and a shining golden crown on her head, straped on her back was two swords and yet the weapon on her hand was a trinket that looks oddly like a wand, she had a kind face yet her eyes showed that she could be a very dangerous enemy if you crossed her.

And floating beside her was a tiny strange looking blue man wearing a yellow robe, and he had a pink crystal in his forhead.

"Rhombulus! did you freeze the wrong guy again!?" asked the red haired demoness.

"No!" answered Rhomby

" _sigh_... yes he did" said his snake hands.

"Hey whose side are you on?!" he asked

"Ugh why are you such an idiot sometimes!?" the demoness asked.

"Thats enough Hekapoo" The Queen calmly said.

"But moon! He is such an idiot!" Hekapoo replied.

Moon, with a very tired sigh just raises a hand for silence.

"Enough okay? We have a job to do, and a mistake to fix" she said eyeing Rhombulus.

"But first let us look for that hell hound"

"Ffffffooound it!" said the tiny floating blue man "its over here and its out cold"

This surprised them, sure a squad of knights could've easily handled a hell hound or three, and someone with magic could've done it alone, but they were on earth, a place with supposedly with no magic and its inhabitants are not as tough as mewmans were, so this was news to them.

Walking over to where the blue man was, they looked at where he was pointing and sure enough they saw that the hound really was out cold.

"Who could've done this Glossaryck?" Moon asked

"Well the only one that was here before us was that boy frozen over there" Glossaryck said, at that they all turned around and looked at the crystal,

Well most of them at least as Hekapoo was focused on the red hoodie that was on the ground right besides the crystal, picking it up she grins.

"Hey cool! it matches my hair!" she said as she opens up a portal a tosses it in before looking at the crystal like everyone else.

 _'he's cute'_ she thought to herself.

"You really think this puny human beat that thing all by himself?" asked Rhombulus

"Hmmmm interesting" was all Glossaryk said

"Okay children, let me take care of this boy, you take that hell hound and do your thing Rhombulus, Hekapoo accompany the Queen back to her castle, she still needs to prepare for her daughter's fourteenth birthday and for the wand ceremony." he said as he warped himself and the boy back to where the boy lived.

"Hmmmm" he said as he touched the crystal holding the boy captive,

"You're only human, yet at the same time you're so much more." he said, a small smile on his face.

"Just like the young princess" as he let go of the crystal the boy's cheeks emitted a soft yellow glow.

"Yup... just like the princess" he says before warping away just as the crystal shattered and turned to smoke leaving the (now hoodieless) boy on his bed fast asleep just as the last rays of the sun disappeared on the horizon.

~~~~~~~~~~

 **I hope you guys enjoyed this first chapter of this story of mine. Also the next chapter should be a part 2 of the prologue. Feel free to tell me how you think, well bye for now! *jetpacks away***

 **Oh and I made some (hopefully good) changes to the spacing and some grammar issues *jetpacks away** *


	2. The Second to come

**Ok so here's the second prologue, after this we can fast forward abit as these 2 chapters kinda serve as the stepping stone of my AU. And now we go to the story! Hope you enjoy.**

 **Prologue 2:**

 **The second to come.**

It was a peaceful morning on the kingdom of Mewni, as the sun's gentle rays were gracing the horizon and the kingdom's citizens.

It lasted for a full five minutes before the kingdom's precious little princess' scream of joy can be heard all throughout the land as she woke up, causing many citizen to smile, and causing a few to looked scared.

You see today was Star Butterfly's fourteenth birthday, and as per tradition she was to inherit the royal family wand one the most powerful magical artifacts across dimentions.

And it was to be given to a hyperactive, carefree and rather reckless teen and it was causing Queen Moon to have a headache, sure she loved Star and all but she was not just a mother to a lovely and really happy child, she was also a Queen to a kingdom at constant war with monsters and other kingdoms, she would've loved it if her fellow mewmans and monsters got along well but that dream is a foolish one if not, just plain stupid.

Not to mention she was also part of the Magic High Commission, and now that she thinks about it, Glossaryck still hasn't answered her question about that weird human they saw a few days ago, saying that all will be answered in due time.

' _sigh, well the moment Glossaryck starts making sense is the day corn starts tasting bad.'_ at this the queen giggled lightly at her own joke.

meanwhile*

While the Queen was busy readying herself and the castle for the ceremony of the Wand, their precious princess was busy taming a wild warnicon and charging through a band of wild monsters, all the while shouting at the top of her lungs.

At the time of the ceremony, instead of walking towards the castle like a proper princess she charges through the doors still riding the bucking warnicorn she tamed earlier.

Dismounting her ride, she stands before her mother and father shaking excitedly as her mother was announcing the responsibilities of being the wand bearer, and of course Star wasn't listening at all to her mother's words.

"Don't worry mom! I can totally handle it!" Star said.

And with that she took the magic wand and felt her hand tingle as she sensed the magic within her and the magic in the wand connect, and in brilliant flash of light the wand transformed into a form that better reflected its new owner.

With that her eyes sparkled and a huge grin adorned her face as she felt the magic within her awaken and made the wand glow a golden light.

Unbeknownst to them, in the town of Echo creek a boy's cheeks glowed a fierce golden light as he lay sound asleep, only to be woken up from his peaceful slumber by the annoying ringing of his alarm.

He opened up his tired eyes just as the golden glow faded. Stretching the sleep out of his system he greeted the day with a smile, feeling unnaturally happy today, he decided to do a quick set of push ups before getting ready for school.

Back on mewni the princess was out and about practicing her newfound magic. Happily skipping about near the edge of the forest, blasting narwhals and cupcakes in random directions.

This went on for about a few minutes, until she heard a twig snapping behind her, turning around quickly, she points her wand at the supposed source of the sound, her warrior instincts kicking in.

"Come on out! I have a wand and Im not afraid to use it!" She said, and much to the princess's delight it did come out, **it** being a hell hound.

"Ha! just a little doggy, come on then, you want some of thiiissss?" she said gesturing to herself and the wand.

"Well come and get it!" she declared, returning to her fighting stance.

Not wasting a second the hound charged forward, unfazed by the cupcake blast the princess fired at it, lunging for it's prey's throat only to clamp down on empty air.

Nimbly dodging the hound's strike Star used the wand as a weapon and swung it in a wide arch connecting with the hound's flank just as it landed.

"Ha, take that!" but her victory was short lived as two more hounds joined the first one looking just as fierce, albeit they were smaller then the original hound.

Starting to panic the princess used her magic to blast the ground between her and the first hound causing a smokescreen of dust to rise up, giving her plenty of time to strategically reposition. (No, not running away, Star Butterfly does not run away from her foes.)

Catching her breath Star looked at the hell hounds with a frown on her face, holding the wand tightly she aimed it at them and began chanting:

 ** _"Forces of nature raging wild, with the magic of mewmans, I cast this spell, with my spirit unbroken let my voice be heard"_**

With that, the wand started glowing a bright pink.

 **"RAINBOW DEVASTATION BEAM!"** Star shouted at the top of her lungs...

~~~~~~~~

"Nooooooo! please don't send me to Saint Olga's reform school for Wayward princesses!" Star begged.

"Sweetie we aren't gonna send you to that jai*cough* I mean school" King River said.

"Oh yay!" Star said happily, only to deflate once her mother added "yet."

Moon looked at her daughter with a mother's gaze, lovingly yet terrifingy at the same time.

Remebering her talk with Glossary earlier that day.

~~~~~~~~

 _'My queen, you have to trust me on this one. When have I ever done you wrong hmmmm?'_ the annoying mentor said. _'_

 _'sigh..not once Glossy, not once, but still will my daughter be alright there?'_ the Queen asked.

 _'H_ _onestly your majesty? No. She will constantly be attacked by evil forces and she will get occasionally hurt, physically and emotionally, but she'll need it in order to grow to be the kingdom's future queen! And let's just say that a great queen isn't the only thing the kingdom will gain from this'_ Glossaryck said as he lightly laughed at his own joke.

 _sigh... I'd ask you about that, but you'll just answer with a riddle or something. And this is about my daughter! How could I willingly send her out knowing what you just told me!?'_

At this Glossaryck smiled

 _'Because my dear Queen, you trust me. And also because I am going to be there for her. And also because_ ** _'the Sun'_** _will be there **'guide'** her'_ Glossaryck said and once again snickered at his own little joke

 _Very well then.'_ the Queen reluctantly agreed.

~~~~~~~~~

"Look Star, you set the kingdom on fire, we're just gonna send you to a safer dimension in order to master your wand, it's a place called Earth" the Queen said.

" _Sigh_... okay mom." Star said dejectedly.

As the chariot moved towards the open portal, Star looked at her home one last time.

"Goodbye mewni..." she said sadly.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was a normal day in Echo creek high, so that means all the students were bored to death by the deafening silence, sure the teachers were talking but no one listened, even the few students who cared about their grades were fast asleep, it was just that kinda of day, even Marco was absently doodling on his notes, since he already studied so far ahead of everyone else he already knew the lesson.

And suddenly the silence was broken by the PA system announcing: " **Marco Diaz to the principal's office, Marco Diaz to the principal's office"**

As Marco stood up he could hear Janna laughing behind him.

"Uh oh, looks like our safe kid is in trouble." She jokingly said.

"For the last time Janna I am not a safe kid!" Marco proclaimed

"Ummm, miss Skullnick do I need a hall pass?" her glare was all the answer he needed as he dashed out fearing for his life.

"I wonder why Principal Skeeves called me, not like I did anything. Other than fighting a hell hound the other day."

"Really thought it was dream though, but seeing Janna's text still on my phone the next day kinda debunked that" Marco thought out loud.

"But how did I get back to my room?" He asked, as he finally saw the principal's office.

"Don't you worry about your child, Mr and Mrs. Butterfly! Marco Diaz is the safest kid at this school! I mean he even wore a helmet in the gym shower, plus he even knows some karate just in case, and speaking of Marco here he is!" Skeeves said just as Marco enters the room.

"King River, Queen Moon this is Marco Diaz, your daughter's new **guid** **e**!"

Just as the word guide left the short man's mouth Queen Moon remembered what Gossaryck said, making the Queen look at the boy closer, and much to her surprise recognized him as the young boy Rhomby froze by accident and who supposedly took down a hell hound by himself.

The Queen kept looking over at the boy, thinking that he's just a regular human.

But the King knew different, he saw a cunning warrior in front of him, he may not have the muscle to take down a bear bare-handed but, he has the brains, siprit, and technique to take down an army alone given enough time. He liked the boy already.

Meanwhile the boy in question was too busy staring at the blonde girl in front of him to notice the two adults looking into his soul and the greedy principal drooling into a chest of gold and jewels.

And as for the blonde girl, she was too busy looking at a fish in Skeeves' aquarium.

"Ummm, hi I'm Marco" said Marco to no one in particular.

 _'Wow, she's so pretty and cute, there's no way she'd be any trouble.'_ he thought

 ** _*Two flaming rainbows, a sentient rain cloud, and a giant moth monster later.*_**

"...Look I didn't get a choice to move here, but you didn't get a choice to deal with me either, I didn't mean to make you feel hurt and sad. I'm sorry, I'll go pack my bags." Star said, but before she could walk away Marco grabbed her hand.

"No." Marco said.

And at this Star just looked confused

" _Sigh_... No. I dont want you to go. I know what I said, but I didn't mean it I was just shocked about having an awesome magical princess move in is all." Marco said with a smile.

"Friends?" And at this Star smiled widely, making Marco blush a little.

"Hugs!" Star said as she hugged him tightly, with Marco hugging back after a second of shock.

And much to Star's confussion and slight annoyance, Marco ended the hug early looking behind Star with eyes full of fear.

Turning around Star saw Ludo and his minions jumping out of a portal, getting mad that they ruined a moment with Marco she got ready to attack, only to have Marco jump in front of her and punch one monster in the gut, kick another one and downing a third one by jumping up and delivering a sweeping heel strike as he jumped.

Star was amazed, that not only can Marco fight but that he fights style.

"Woah! you can fight!!?" She asked excitedly.

"Its called, Karate!" Marco said with a confident smirk.

 **Several unconscious monsters later.**

"Ha, you want some of this Luuudo?" Star asked with a hint of smugness in her voice.

" _Sigh_.. no princess." Ludo said as he opened a portal and walked his monsters home.

"That was awesome! You were awesome! And I was awesome!" Marco said excitedly.

"Are there going to be fighting like that all the time?" he asked as he did a few karate poses.

"Hmmm yeah probably!" Star said with a smile.

At this Marco's heart nearly stopped...

There were going to more fights, that meant Star could get hurt, he realized.

But looking at his new friend's smiling face he couldn't bring himself to ruin it.

 _'I'm just going to have to prepare for this myself.'_

Smiling to himself with his plan already forming in his head, he takes Star's hand and leads her home, to _their_ home.

"Come on Star, let's go home Marco says.

Star looks at their intertwined hands and smiles.

"Oh let's wait for the green light before we cross though" Said Marco stopping before a red light, earning a giggle from Star.

"Whatever you say wildman." Star said.

~~~~~~~~~~

 **Prologues are done, yay! Next Chapter we fast forward to the Bloodmoon Ball, and we learn a little bit more about Marco and his friends! Oh and there's going to be some fight scenes there too, so look forward to that. And feel free to tell me what you guys think! Bye for now.**

 **Oh and yeah, made a few changes to the grammar and spacing here as well, I hope you guys like it. Feel free to tell me any mistakes! *jet packs away* Bye for noooowww...**


	3. Through the Fire and Flames

**Hey guys, Third Chapter is here and like I said we're going forward with the story so we're gonna fastforward to the Bloodmoon Ball, and we're learn a little bit more about Marco! Enjoooooy!**

 **Chapter 3**

 **Through the Fire and Flames.**

It was a peaceful in day in Echo Creek high, which was weird considering the fact that a magical princess from another dimension moved in not too long ago.

At this thought Marco grows a fond smile, remembering the ever-smiling hyperactive and slightly destructive blonde girl he now calls his best friend, Star Butterfly.

Still, he never would have thought that in his whole life he'd be best friends with a magical princess.

Although he was quick to adapt to the magical mayhem that now follows him everyday, which wasn't surprising since he was childhood friends with a witch.

And with that thought he looks over to where Janna was sitting, absentmindedly staring at the ceiling, and through some unknown force she felt Marco's eyes on her, so she flashed him a flirty smirk and a wink, causing the poor boy to turn pale and shudder.

Giggling to herself, she resumes staring at the ceiling.

 _'Sigh... yup my life really is anything but normal, especially with parents like mine'_

He thought to himself as he remembered all the shenanigans his parents got in.

 _Not really complaning though, because of those things I get to see so many cool things I never would've dreamed of seeing, especially thanks to Star. Oh and there's Star right now dragging a demon out to the parking lot_

After five whole seconds of silence, Marco's eyes went wide as he accidentally snaps his pencil in his hand, sitting up so fast that he startles the teacher.

"MAY I GO TO THE RESTROOM!?" Marco shouts, and not really waiting for a reply.

"OKAY, THANKS BYE" he said as he rushes out of class.

"No Tom! I don't wanna hear it." Star said as she continued to push the demon away

"We broke up okay! That's it, end of story. Take your demon butt, your fire, and your dead horse back to the underworld!" she said as she turned her back to him.

"Wait, I'm dead?" asked the skeletal horse

"Look Starship" Tom said as he reached out to grab her shoulder, but before his hand could touch her shoulder an ear piercing _"Hiyaaaah"_ was heard just as a hoodie wearing boy jumped in and chopped his hand off.

"Star! Are you okay, are you hurt?" Marco asked as he fussed over his best friend, looking her over to make sure wasn't hurt.

Star just giggled to herself seeing how Marco was being a safe kid again.

 _'there's my Marco, being his usual safe kid self again'_ She thought.

Star just smiled reassuringly.

"Don't worry Marco I'm alright" Star said.

Marco just sighed.

"Look Star it's my job to worry about you okay?" he said as he smiled at her.

And before Star could say anything she and Marco got distracted by an inhuman growl, looking at Tom they saw a ghostly trail of smoke coming from Tom's severed hand and connecting it to his wrist.

After it reconnnect to him he looked at Marco with murder in his eyes.

 **YOU!"** he growled as his eyes turned magma red, not unlike the eyes of the hell hound Marco fought months ago.

But just as pillars of flame exploded out behind him, a short pudgy little man rushed out of the demon's carriage and walked the demon in circles, patting his back, and saying words of encouragement.

When he finally calmed down and the flames died down he looked at Star and smiled.

"I'm getting better Star, I promise. And I know you don't want anything to do with me, but hear me out. The Bloodmoon Ball is tonight, and it only happends every 667 years! I'm inviting you as my plus one, nothing more. The choice is yours" He says as he hands a small bell and a tiny hammer, all the while having a small smile on his face.

They watched as the flaming portal closes up taking the carriage and the self conscious skele-horse with it.

"You know guys like that don't change right?" Marco said, looking at the scorch marks left by the demon's flames.

"Uh huh." Star said nodding.

" _sigh_... But you're still going aren't you?"

Marco asks, already knowing the answer

 ***meanwhile in the Underworld***

"Everything is going according to plan" Tom said to himself in the carriage.

"But that boy could pose a threat." He said as he flexed his recently severed hand, still feeling some pain even though it already healed.

"Tell them to double the guards. And send that boy a welcome party from me once Star gets here." He said to a gargoyle who nodded and flew off to do his master's bidding.

 ***back in the Diaz residence***

"Star, I know I can't stop you from going but, how about I come with you? You know, just to be safe." Marco said as he dodged the clothes his bestie was throwing all around her room.

"Oh come on Marco trust me a little" She said as her eyes sparkled, picking up a firery red dress

"Oh I trust you plenty Star. It's **him** I don't trust." Marco said malice dripping from his voice.

"Oh hush you!" Star said with a giggle, oblivious to the boy's tone of voice.

"Anyway, what do you think?" she asked as she walked out of her maze of a closet wearing her hair up, some light make up, and the red dress she picked up earlier.

Instead of answering Marco looked at her with as a light blush creeped it's way up to his face. _'wow... I knew she looked pretty before but now she looks...'_

"Amazing..." The word managed to crawl out of his mouth without his knowledge.

"Hehe, thanks Marco." Star giggled as she twirled, testing her new dress, only to stop when she heard Marco say...

"No, really Star. You look beautiful." He said in an almost trace like state

Blushing now, Star just smiled at Marco.

"Anyway, I gotta go now." she said as she rung her bell, almost instantly regretting her decision when she saw how sad Marco looked.

Before she could say anything, the hellevator appeared in a flash of fire.

" _sigh..._ I gotta go Marco." she said as she stepped in.

"Well, have fun Star, I'll have some nachos ready when you get back." Marco said with a smile.

As the hellevator doors closed and it began descending Marco's smile disappeared almost instantly.

 _I should probably just go study now.'_

Marco thought to himself as he went back to his room, but just as was about to sit on his desk he saw his _Dio de los Muertos_ costume in his closet,

"Or maybe I could surprise Star when she gets back." He says outloud, smiling to himself and getting his stuff ready.

Back in the underworld, Mewni's princess wasn't having the best of times, as she was almost drenched in unicorn blood, **_unicorn blood_** for corn's sake!

 _'maybe I should've stayed with Marco.'_ she thought as she pouted at the how horrible the night was going.

"Hey Starship! you liking it so far?" Tom asked.

"What!? You almost drowned me unicorn blood Tom!" Star said.

"I should've just stayed with my Marco" she said with a huff.

' _My Marco'_ That didn't evade the demon's ears. And it almost made him explode right then and there, but managed to calm down as he thought about how close he was to getting what he wanted.

"Ok, ok I'm sorry, but look the dance will start in a little while just stay until then, please?" he begged

" _Sigh..._ fine Tom. I'll stay till then." she replied.

"Okay great! Let me just take care of something, I'll be right back!" he says running off. Grabbing a random gargoyle that was flying around, Tom brought to his face,

" **I want that guy's skull scorched, cracked and mounted on my wall RIGHT. NOW!"** He said with a growl.

Then he let the poor gargoyle go and went back to making sure he got that dance perfect.

Back at the Diaz household Marco has just finished setting up his surprise for Star, he was already wearing his costume, and his sombrero and skull mask were ready and waiting. All that was left was Star.

 _sigh... I hope you're doing alright Star'_ he tought as he sat down on a lawn chair, trying to relax and wait.

Only to be disturbed by a weird voice saying:

" _Bloodmoon tonight."_

Marco strains his neck looking left and right for the source of the sound, eyes finally stopping on a painting of a sea captain.

Marco narrows his eyes suspicious of the artwork...

 _The moon of lovers"_

The same voice says, this time it sounded like it came from everywhere at once, but before he could ponder on what the voice said, he heard the sound of a portal opening behind him.

Followed by the smell of sulphur and brimstone.

Marco comes face to face with a demon, not unlike Tom, however, this demon had a lot more muscle on him and he was dressed like a mercenary, a sweet looking black leather jacket, along with black pants and boots, he also had a great sword stapped on his back and two smaller swords on his belt, he also had deep purple skin, pitch black hair, and pure silver eyes, and speaking of eyes although this one also had three eyes he had an eye patch on his leftmost eye, leaving only the one his right side and on his forehead visible.

He looks at the human with contempt in his eyes.

"Ha, this is the one the prince is concerned about? You don't even look like you could carry a sword!" he says as he laughs out loud.

"What do you want? What are you doing here? And where's Star!?" Marco said, getting into a fighting stance .

"Well, to answer your questions, first, I wanna get paid, second I'm on a job to kill you and take your head as proof, and third the princess is about to have her soul forcibly bound to Tom" he calmly said as he counted them off on his fingers.

"Happy?" he asked.

" **WHAT!!?"** Marco yelled, anger making him clench his fists, his eyes taking on a light shade of red.

But the demon just looked bored and rolled his two eyes.

"Look it's just death kid, nothing personal, you don't need to shou-offf..." he said, before he could finish his sentence the kid had sucker punched him and hit him with a perfectly executed tornado kick, connecting his left foot just at the base of the demon's right horn, knocking him down and out.

Picking up his mask and sombrero Marco rushes towards the still burning portal, determination and a much darker emotion written in his eyes.

But just as Marco entered the portal the demon begun to groggily stand up.

"Heh, you think you can knock me out that easil...ouf" he said, only to be frozen in blue crystal and shoved through a different portal.

"Now, now lets not ruin the children's fun"

Glossaryck said, laughing softly

"This'll be interesting."

Stepping through the portal, Marco arrives in the Underworld, only to be stopped by two skeleton guards in heavy armor.

"Halt!" said one of them, since their faces were hidden in their helmets it was impossible to tell who talked.

"Who are you? Where's your invite?" one of them said.

Marco just stared at them.

"Move. Now." he said, clenching his fists and somehow making the golden designs on the mask glow, and coupled with his now crimson red eyes, the skeletons simply obliged fearing for their afterlives.

Frantically searching for his best bestie, Marco ran around, and (politely) asking other partygoers to move out of his way.

He didn't know where to look, until he heard a familiar sounding voice shout:

 **"Ugh, this is the wrong song!"**

It was that damn demon again.

Marco's mask was now unnaturally golden and his eyes held no trace of their original chocolatety colour instead it was now red, rimmed with a golden glow, and he was just about ready to punch that demon in the face.

That is, until Tom moved away and Marco was able to see Star.

Almost instantly, his eyes reverted to their original colour and his mask's light slowly dimmed until it's golden glow was barely even visible now.

 _'Ugh! I can't believe him. He asked me to stay for the dance and then he leaves just cause it was the wrong song? I could be with Marco right now eating his super awesome nachos!'_ She thought to herself, but just as Star was about to leave she felt a hand gently hold unto her own.

And instantly they were surrounded by a soft red light, making the two of them look up above and see the moon shining down upon them.

Quickly realizing that all eyes were on them and that Star might get embarrassed if they just stood there looking dumb, Marco did the only logical thing to do, and danced with his best friend, taking the lead, he led her around the center of the room, every step sure and steady and his own confidence growing with each turn, spin, and dip.

He quickly found a smile growing on his face as he saw Star with a look of awe on her face, her eyes twinkling like her namesake.

"Star" he whispered her name.

"Yeeeees?" Was all she managed to say, being lovestruck by the mysterious stranger who was such an excellent dancer.

"Star it's me" He said again.

"Yeah, that's my name alright" she giggled

"...wait how'd you know my name?"

Laughing lightly before Marco answered: "Star, it's me. Marco." he said, as he took off his mask.

Before Star could even be surprised by what she just learned, Marco was violently shoved away from her just as the light faded away, making her feel really reaaaaaally mad.

Tom, looked at the fading light with blank eyes, before turning towards the boy with pure unadulterated rage.

" **You! That dance was for me! You will pay for that!"** he says marching towards the human, but before he could lay his hands around the human's throat, he was blasted to the far side of the ball room and then frozen into a huge chunk of ice as he tried to get up.

Shocked by what just happend, Marco looks towards Star, holding the wand in both hands and aimed at Tom's frozen body, he couldn't help but feel proud at how his bestie was starting to slowy get better at using her wand.

But since his focus was on how awesome she looked in that moment, he failed to see the look of pure hatred Star was giving the frozen demon.

"Come on Marco let's go home." Star said firmy, grabbing the boy's hand and leading him towards the hellevator.

~~~~~~~

"Ughhh can't believe it! That was so annoying!" Star said angrily.

"I told you Star, guys like Tom never change." Macro said matter-of-factly

"I mean come on, he invited you to a ball just so he could trick you and he even went and got an assassin to try and kill me, so I wouldn't be able to get to you." he said crossing his arms and pouting, in that adorable way he does whenever he gets mad, or when Star steals his cereal.

"No Marco not Tom! I'm talkieee... wait what!? Star asked immediately forgetting what she was just about to say.

"You fought an assassin?

"Yeah Star, knocked him out right therrrrr..." Marco's eyes immediatly widened in terror, remembering the assassin he left earlier that night.

"Get behind me" Marco said getting into his fighting stance.

"Ugh... I can take care of myself Marco." Star said with some anger laced into her words.

"I know Star I've seen you fight countless times, but you can't exactly blast him away if he gets the jump on you an knocks the wand away." Marco said nonchalantly

"Better to have me up front, and you behind with your long ranged spells" he said.

"huh... fair enough" Star said readying her wand.

After making sure that the assassin wasn't behind Star's bed or anywhere else in her room Marco began to relax again.

" _sigh..._ sorry about that Star" Marco said

"Oh it's okay Marco, I can just fix up my nightstand with maaagic" Star said waving her wand and making Marco chuckle.

"No Star, not that, although I am sorry I broke it, but what I was talking about was the Ball. I knew you could've taken care of yourself just fine, you're tough. But I was just worried about you, after what that assassin said about you being forcibly soul bound to Tom, I kinda lost it. I'm sorry..." Marco said looking everywhere but at Star's eyes.

"It's okay Marco" Star said as she pulled her bestest bestie into a crushing hug.

After returning the hug Marco remembered what he was doing before the assassin came.

"Hey Star follow me" Marco said as he lead her to the rooftop balcony.

And on the balcony was a pair of lawnchairs with a small table between them holding what appears to be a covered bowl and underneath that table was a cooler full of nice cold drinks.

"Surprise Star" Marco said as he sat on one of the chairs and took off his hat.

"Come on, join me" he said gesturing to the other chair.

"Why don't mind if I do" Star said in a singsong voice and sitting besides her bestie.

After the nachos were eaten(after being reheated of course) and drinks have drunk, Marco stood up and stretched.

"Awwww I don't wanna leave yet." Star said as she pouted and looked at Marco with tear filled eyes

At this Marco just rolled his eyes.

"Surprise isn't over yet Star." Marco said as he took out his phone played a soft song. Bowing towards the princess he extends his hand out in front of him "

May I have this dance?" he says with a confident smirk on his face.

With her eyes sparkling like her namesakes above them, she takes Marco's hand.

"Why yes, Prince Marco of Earth" Star says playfully.

Rolling his eyes, he just takes her and leads her in a slow dance spinning around gently and making sure they don't fall.

~ _You look amzing you know~_ They both say at the same time.

 _~And I didn't know you such a great dancer~_ They once again said at the same time.

~ _And tonight was great, even though Tom was a jerk.~_ And that was the last straw, as they both have a slight frown on their faces.

~ _okay stop that. it's getting annoying.~_ they both said, not once stopping their dance.

~ _I like pie!~_

 _~it wasn't me the laser puppies did it!~_

And with that the two best friends laughed out loud as they continued their dance, unbeknownst to them was the moon casting a soft red glow upon them like a spotlight.

They also didn't notice the small blue man watching them silently with a small smile on his face as he slowly and carefully took a spoonfull of pudding and stuffed it into his mouth.

"Yup, that's good pudding." Glossaryck said.

And they also didn't notice a beanie wearing girl on a tree taking their picture with a wide smile on her face.

"Definetly worth the five hour wait. Finally got fresh blackmail material for Diaz" Janna said.

~~~~~~~~~~~

 **And that's the end of that Chapter! I hope you guys enjoyed it. Oh and there's a reason that assassin didn't have a name( definitely not cause I couldn't decide and just planned to do it next time, definitely not that. Nope.) and he will be back, I'm not gonna treat him like a certain bounty hunter of a certain film** **. And I hope you guys liked Janna little appearance here, cause next chapter she'll be present and so will a certain freshly thawed demon.**

 **And I apologize as I originally planned to release this earlier today but I felt a little under the weather. Sorry *moonwalks away***


	4. Training in the Mindscape

**Okay, so just a heads up this chapter will be a bit shorter, but don't worry the next chapter should be the normal length and it'll be out either later today or early tomorrow. And I wanted to write this a couple of days ago but I got busy, sorry. Hope you guys enjoy this!**

 **Chapter** **4**

 **Training in** **the Mindscape**

It was night time in Echo creek, and just like any other household( magical princess or no) they were falling into an activity everyone was familliar with, bedtime.

The lights were off, the late night nachos have been eaten and the usual attempt to steal the wand by Ludo was foiled once again.

And now everybody was enjoying the warmth of their beds and the sweet gentle dreams they're dreaming, well everybody but Marco Diaz that is.

You see the poor boy is having a problem completly falling asleep, as once again his thoughts are a jumbled mess, thinking about how a certain demon could be planning his funeral right now, thinking about how Star always seems to find trouble and make it into a fun game, thinking about how Janna was on top of him with his head inbetween her arm and how she was smiling at his sleeping face

 _'UHWAAA... Janna!?'_ Marco thought as got up and flailing arms everywhere, he scanned his room looking for his beanie clad friend and sure enough there she was with a smile on her face at the edge of his bed.

"Janna! What the heck are you doing here!?" Marco screamed at the girl, she just responded by tilting her head to the side and losing her smile, looking at him with...

 _'wait a minute, that's not how Janna's eyes look like'_ he thought to himself

"Who are you?" he asked as he narrowed his eyes at the person near his bed.

And just like that notJanna dissappeared, disintegrating into smoke, a look of absolute horror and fear was written on the boy's face only to be replaced by a look of understanding and slight boredom.

"Oh, so I'm here again, huh." Marco said aloud, scratching his head and stretching the kinks out of his back before jumping out of bed.

"Hmmm, seems like I've been here more and more after the whole mewberty thing and even more so after the bloodmoon ball" he says, just as a small blush makes it way to his face, whether it was because of the dance they shared or how Star looked in her mewberty form,or maybe both, he didn't know.

"But it'd be nice if I was woken up by something other than my friends and family standing over me and just poofing out exitence you know!" he shouted towards the void, hearing no response he just sighs in defeat and walks through the fog that seems to have enveloped his room, unbeknonwst to him was Glossaryck floating in the space where his bed was.

"Hmmmm interesting" the blue man said. Sneakily following the boy

Walking out of the fog and into a feild of grass with various tables scattered about with all manners of stuff on them, mostly books though, like cook books, school books, first aid books, even some books about Mewni and lots and lots of martial arts books and not just karate ones, there were ones like taekwondo, jujitsu, wing chun and a whole lot more, and all of the books seemed well worn as if they've all been read multiple times.

On some of the other tables you could see various weapons lying about, with different sword types whose edges were dulled with use and other weapons too like, some nunchuckus, quarter staves and bo staves along with varius training dummies lying about.

"Now, what should I do this time? hmmm" Marco thought aloud while tapping his chin.

"How about magic?" Glossaryck asked him

"GAAAHHH!" Marco screamed as he turned around quickly, looking for the owner of that familiar voice, sure enough he saw the magical blue man floating above a table filled with mewman lawbooks.

"Hello Marco" Glossaryck said with a smile.

"Wha-how'd you get in here? Isn't this in my head?" Marco asked after regaining his composure (and dignity, after screaming like a little girl)

"Yes, yes it is my boy, but no I'm not here with you I'm just technically just a figment of your thoughts, that I telepathically hijacked inorder to talk to you." he said matter-of-factly

"Ohhhhkay then... And you said magic right? You do know that I'm human right? Meaning I don't do magic" He said as he wiggled his fingers for emphasis

Glossaryck just rolled his eyes at this, "You're in your own mind boy. Just trust me on this." he said giving Marco a reassuring smile

"You want me, to trust you.. Me. Trusting _you_? You want me to _trust you?"_ Marco said with an eyebrow raised.

Sighing in annoyance Glossaryck summons a small ball of fire and tosses it towards Marco

"Block this for me will ya?" he said.

Not having anytime to think or move Marco brings his arms up covering his head and chest and attempting to block the fire ball.

And surprisingly just as the fireball was inches from his face a small half dome of light appeared and blocked it, sending the excess flames around Marco, thoroughly protecting him.

"Woah, that was awesome!" he said pumping his fist in the air, and then immediately feeling weak and exhausted, and almost collapsing

"Woah, easy there tiger, we're going to have to practice channeling it first." Glossy said.

"Does this mean I can use magic now?" Marco asked with a small smile

"No." Glossaryck said quickly

"Oh, too bad..." Marco said, saddened by the news

"Why would you wants magic anyways?" Glossaryck inquired

"N-no reason, just thought that I might be a bit more useful to Star when we fight Ludo 'n stuff..." Marco said.

 _'Yup, definetly King material.'_ Glossaryck thought, being an all powerfull all knowing magic being, he was able to tell that Marco was not lying at all.

"Well don't be so sad, we can still practice here you know." Glossaryck said smiling.

~~~~~~~~

 **Okay, first off I apologize for the short chapter but I'm a lil tired today, and I'm sorry if you feel like it's not**

 **the same quality as the other chapters, anyway feel free to review, and I'm glad that some people are actually enjoying this! I'll continue to do my best in writting this, also be ready for giant space squids in the future chapters. *sleepwalks away***


	5. Song of the Night

**Hey there lovelies, next chapter is out now and I hope you enjoy it! Sorry if there'll be some mistakes in my writing I'm a little sleepy today (I accidentally poured some cola into half a cup of coffee, and I didn't realize till I took a mouthful xD)**

 **Chapter 5**

 **Song of the Night.**

"Woah, so you really spent sixteen years in another dimension earning those?" Janna said as she pointed to the scissors Marco was twirling on his finger.

"Yup, I sure did. I did alot of things I'd rather not do ever again to earn these. I got hurt, and I hurt those that got in my way, but I also helped alot of people, so it's not so bad." Marco replied nonchalantly.

"Cool. So you uh got like PTSD or something? Or maybe some cool magic and stuff?" Janna asked, obviously intrigued

"Nope not really, I barely even remember what I did before walking into the portal back home with Star." he said.

"I asked Glossaryck about it and he said the memory loss is only natural." Marco said, just as he felt a pain in his head, like an important memory was trying to surface.

 _'but he did say that for some reason I remember more than most people that survive Hpoo's trial do, granted not many survive it, but still'_ He thought to himself.

"Though I did manage to take some stuff with me." Marco added.

"Cool! And hey, where's the princess?" Janna asked

"Aren't you two usually inseperable?"

"She's in detention. Again." Marco said not catch the last thing Janna said.

"And please don't steal these scissors Jann, they're more dangerous than you'd think." He said, only to find that the scissors were already spinning in his friend's hand, a smug victor's smile on her face

"Or atleast give them to me after you finish, please." Marco said as he facepalmed.

"Well see you tomorrow safe kid." Janna said as they reached the front of the school.

"Yeah see you then Jann, I'll wait for Star here" Marco said before he remembered something important.

"And give me back the scissors Janna."

"You're getting sharper everyday safe kid" Janna said with a smirk on her face.

"Yeah yeah whatever." Marco said smiling and reaching for the scissors.

But before he could grab them, a pillar of flame erupted across the road and two hellhounds bounded out of the firery inferno.

Marco immedietly got into a fighting stance.

"Janna call Star, I might need help with this." he said.

Honestly though, they looked smaller than the one he fought earlier this year, but he can never be too safe right?

"Wait, are those... Holy shit! hellhounds!" Janna said, more with excitement than fear, fully trusting her friend can take them on.

"Janna! Watch your language." Marco said with a slightly angry frown on his face.

"Oh sorry. I meant Holy shit! heckhounds." she said, a mocking smile on her face.

Rolling his eyes Marco just smiled at his friend's antics.

"Fine just make sure you don't get in the way." he said as he got ready to fight the charging beasts.

"Yeah, yeah whatever." Janna said as she got back to the stairs in frint of the school and sat down, ready to enjoy the show.

The faster of the two beasts got to Marco first and was going skewer him with it's horns, only to have the human vault over him and land an axe kick, just as he landed, on the second hound's head causing it's horns to dig into the concrete immobilizing the hound.

This only angered the first hound, making it charge at the red hooded human again, this time it manage to hit him, but just barely.

"Hey! I only have like fifty of these hoodies! l" Marco said as he looked at the cut in front of his hoodie, just above the pockets where his hands usually rested.

Angered at the sight of his ruined clothes he runs towards the hound, following human the hound also charges, but the human sidestepped just before he got impaled by its horns and he landed a devastating downward punch at the base of the hound's right horn, causing it to slam it's head on the hard ground, knocking it out.

Standing up, Marco released an uneasy breath feeling a little tired after the fight.

"Not bad Diaz, not bad." Janna said. Causing Marco to jump as he didn't expect the beanie wearing girl to be standing right behind him

"Janna! Stop sneaking up on me." Marco screamed.

Janna just snickered at Marco's reaction, she loved that look. "Anyway here" she said as she handed him his scissors.

And once again they were interrupted, this time by soft clapping.

"Yeah, not bad **Diaz. Not. Bad.** " Tom said, as he stepped out of a portal, his eyes a deep shade of red.

Marco's grip on his scissors tightened.

"Janna, **h** **ide. Now.** " he said, his voice hardening.

"That's the demon you pissed off by dancing with Star right?" at this Marco looked at her with a shocked look on his face

"What? Star told me about it, she really liked it you know." She said with a smirk.

And at that Tom growled, realizing the danger of the situation Janna ran and hid.

As she ran, Tom began throwing fireballs at Marco.

Letting instict take over, Marco began running and dodging the flames. When he got up he snapped the blades of his scissors off, and made and X shape slash in front of him making a portal and jumping in.

Appearing right above Tom and a little to the left he landed a flying kick at his face before rolling away and jumping in another portal exiting out and away from Tom.

This went on for a while, Tom tossing fire balls and making pillars of flame erupt from beneath the human only to have him dodge by jumping into portals or opening up portals to swallow up the fireballs.

"You know Star gonna be here any minute now right? And she's gonna freeze your demon butt again." Marco said as he jumped out of a portal after dodging another fireball.

"You think I didn't think about that?"Tom said as he smiled.

"She's gonna be busy for a while."

Marco's face turned pale at this. _'I gotta end this quick and get to Star'_ he thought to himself.

 ** _~meanwhile~_**

"Oh maaaai gosh! these puppies are so cuuuute!" Star said while hugging two little puppies

 ** _~back to the fight~_**

"Why can't you just get over her already dang it!?" Marco said narrowly dodging a fireball by hiding behind a tree.

 **"And then what? Leave her to you? No effing way Diaz. She's gonna be mine! And mine alone! You think you're gonna be good enough for her? You think you can keep that wreck of a princess from destroying her kingdon when she rules? Ha! As if Diaz. As if."** Tom said, as he kept throwing fireballs at the tree the human was behind, not able to see that the boy's eyes were turning a light shade of red as he said those words.

"You think Star needs to be held back?" Marco asked, his voice laced with anger.

"You think you could own her? You think she can't take care of herself and her people? Ha. Sure she's destructive and careless but she's sweet, kind, selfless, thoughtful and she's strong, stronger than you think, stronger than you'd ever know! She'll be **Damn. Great. Queen.** " Marco growled, as he stepped out of the tree's cover.

 _'Ha what an idiot.'_ Tom thought as he fired off a column of hellfire and brimstone at the human, only to have him open up a portal and step out behind him.

Turning around, Tom felt Marco's fist hit his guts making the demon clutch his stomach and bending over, only to get an uppercut straight to the face, but the human didn't stop there.

Marco grabbed the demon's right horn with his left hand and headbutted him.

Then he grabbed the horn again, and twisted his hand so that Tom was looking at him and he punched, and punched and punched and punched and punched.

And finally he introduced his knee to Tom's face.

Dropping the demon down he looked at him.

"Go home Tom. If you really want Star, then work on yourself first, the reason she broke up with you was cause of your anger issues, but you probably know that already." He said as he turned around, ready to go to Star.

"I'd rather get rid of you first." Tom said, already getting up.

 _'Right, demonic regeneration. Though he should be feeling tired right now._ Marco thought to himself as he got into a fighting stance again, but he wasn't prepared for when Tom shot a column of flame to the left of Marco.

Thinking he shot at Janna, Marco turned to looked so quickly he might have given himself whiplash, only to see that Jackie was there looking at the flames like a deer in the headlights, completely frozen in fear.

Not really thinking, Marco cut open a portal and jumped right in front of Jackie hugging her and protecting her from the flames, since they were more magic than actual physical fire Marco wasn't burned too badly, but his clothes were, a perfect circle was burned from his hoodie and grey shirt where the fire hit him, and he was hurt, bad.

Coughing up blood, he looks at Jackie with a soft smile on his face.

"Run Jackie. I'll take care of this." Marco said as he turned around and walked towards the demon, only to fall to his knee, then to his side, the pain was too much for the boy.

Snapping out of her daze Jackie runs to Marco and holds his head in her arms and lets him rest on his lap, tears falling on the latino boy's face as Jackie looked down on his agonized face, she wipes her tears away and looks at the demon with murder in her eyes, her seashell necklace glowing a soft blue color rimmed with a fierce red hue at the edges.

"You're gonn..." she started to say, but was interrupted when a green beam of energy hit Tom at the side of his head.

"Starship, I can explain!" Tom said as he got up, rubbing his head trying to make the pain go away, it hurt bad enough from that human's punches but the blast made it worse.

"Look, I'm sor..." He started to say, but he got blasted again.

 _'What the? Starship always lets me talk before blasting me twice"_

Finally looking up, Tom's mouth fell open as he saw, that it wasn't Star who was blasting him with magic, but instead it the beanie wearing girl, her eyes glowing a harsh shade of green with her hands glowing a similar color, and a small silver flame floating infront of her forehead flickering between red and blue hues.

" **What did you do to Marco?!"** Janna said, her voice distorted and dripping with absolute anger.

"Wha-what? How're you doing that?" Tom asked confussed, she was human. How does she have magic?

Pissed that demon didn't answer her question she continued blasting him with magic.

Until eventually Tom had enough and started to fight back.

Only to be stopped by ethereal chains appearing out of nowhere and locking his limbs in place.

"If Marco doesn't make it." Janna said as she walked closer to the chained up demon her hands glowing a deeper shade of green.

With every step that the human girl took, the demon felt the fear in him grow, (And he never felt afraid, he was a demon for corn's sake) but this human girl made him afraid, made him realise his own mortality, and in that moment he wasn't the powerful demon prince of the Underworld, no, in that moment he was mortal.

Janna looks at the demon with nothing but contempt in her eyes, then Janna looks towards Marco's still unmoving body, with tears falling down her face she looks back towards the demon, her eyes now fully glowing a haunting shade of green.

"I will tear your head from your body and use your blood and soul to revive him." Janna said, her voice sounding so hurt and so angry it made the demon wince.

"I don't care how he turns out to be after that, but I need him. I needed him and you took him away from me! You killed mmy..." Janna's rant was stopped as she felt someone behind her, hugging her tightly.

"Easy there troublemaker. I'm here, I'm here." Marco said so softly and lovingly that Janna actually blushed, with tears still falling down her face, she hugged him back, making him winch in pain as she touched his still hurting bare back.

Apparently, against Jackie's protesting: _'you're hurt Marco, let me be the one to talk to Janna, just stay there and rest'_ she had said, but Marco still got up and limped toward his childhood friend and hugged her.

Not really knowing what compelled her to do so, Jackie got up walked over to them and joined in the hug, happy that her best friend was calming down, and happy that her hero was (stubbornly) alright.

After hearing all the commotion Star finally got to the front of the school and saw the destruction in front of her. Shocked at what she saw, (and that she wasn't the cause of this) she began calling for Marco, worried about her mess-up twin and best bestie.

When she finally saw two of her friends and her best friend hugging she was felt relieved, until she saw Marco's back and how it was hurt and with a hole in his precious hoodie. She felt angry, really angry, even more so when she saw Tom.

Sure she was curious how her ex was tied up with ghostly chains, but that can wait, right now Star needed an outlet and he was perfect, since Star was well aware of how Tom's magic looked like she knew he was the culprit, that was the tipping point of her anger.

 _"Arctic North, and Blazing South, Give me your strength, For I call for your aid."_ Star began chantting.

 _"Mend the broken and Smite my foe, With words unspoken, I let you g_ _o, Now wreck havoc and Do my will._ _'_

 **Nuclear Power Fists!**

Star said as she traced a full circle in front of her with her wand, brought her wand directly in front of her and then she slammed it into the ground. When she bought it back up two giants fists, one red and the other blue, erupted from where the wand was slammed into the ground.

The two fists immediatly started flying around like 4-year olds on a sugar rampage, or Star in a sugar rampage or just a regular rampage.

But unlike those things everything the fists touched they fixed, all the broken cars, torched bushes and trees and they even fixed Marco's hurt back and even fixed his hoodie too, unfortunately they weren't expecting that a huge flaming red fist would fly through them while they were still hugging so they all screamed in unison and fell on top of each other.

After everything was fixed up the two fists hit Tom and started dragging him up and towards the still open portal.

Looking at her handywork Star smirked, proud of her work.

"What do you think guys? Awesome right?" Star asked them, but only then did she realize that they weren't anywhere in sight.

Until she looked down, and saw that they were still a tangled sprawl from when they fell on top of each other.

"Awwww group hug!" Star said as she dove right in and pulled everyone into a huge hug.

"Alright, Star you can let go now, we kinda need to breath" Marco said patting his bestie on the back.

"Oh right sorry. Hehe." Star said, finally letting go.

"Anyway what uhhhh happended here?" she asked.

Marco and Janna looked at each other and shared a look, breathing out at the same time, they decided to tell the truth.

"...and that's what happened." Janna ended.

Star's eyes were literally shining and looking like her namesake as listened to the story.

"Woah woah woah. Woah. So since when did you have magic Janna Banana?" Star asked obviously curious.

"Since always. Just never really used it much, other than messing with Marco that is." She said.

At that, Marco shivered, remembering being "messed with" by Janna.

"It's better if we don't elaborate on that okay." Marco said just as Star was about to ask.

"Fine, but why don't you use it more often? Seems like something you'd do, like alot." Star asked, tilting her head to the side.

At that question Janna looked saddened and down, Jackie placed a reasuring hand on her shoulder.

"I uh... I got bullied back then 'cause of these powers. Like, alot." Janna said as she let off an uneasy laugh.

Star however, looked just about ready to kill, her wand showing this by glowing a deep green color.

"Nobody hurts my Janna! Where are these bullies? Imma teach them a lesson." She said angrily.

"We don't have to worry about them anymore Star." Janna said still looking a little down.

"Look Star, just let it go okay? Those guys won't be bothering Janna anymore okay. I made sure of that." Marco said with an edge in his when reached the last sentence.

"Anyway Star where were you? You didn't have to fight any monsters right? Are you hurt anywhere? And you too Jackie, you haven't been burned right?" Marco said as he began fussing over the girls, his safe kid side shining brighter than ever.

"Noooope! I'm fine I was just playin with these guys!" Star said as she picked up two puppies out of nowhere.

One was a bright pale white colored pup, with a tuft of reddish-brown hair on his head, he had bright orange amber eyes and his tail was wagging fifty times a second when he saw Marco.

The other pup was also pale white but with a slight blue tint to her fur along with a wavy line of blue fur on her right side, she had chocolate brown eyes not unlike Marco's but the weird thing was her tail looked more like a cat's tail instead of a dog's, same with her ears but she was still adorable.

"Woah, cute. But Star you do know that we have like seven laser puppies at home right?" Marco said and immediately regretted it as her face looked so sad.

" _sigh..._ I'm sorry Star but no means no. Maybe you guys can keep them?" Marco asked Jackie and Janna.

"I want one! I want one!" Jackie said jumping up and down and with her eyes shining bright, as she took the one with the blue mark from Star.

"I'm gonna call you Bleu! My little Azul Bleu." She said as she started rubbing her face at the top of the pup's head.

Trying to fight the blush creeping up his face from seeing Jackie act so cute, Marco shakes his head and turns to Janna.

"Nope. Not my thing Diaz, you keep him. He seems to like you anyway." Janna said immediately.

Upod hearing that, Star seems to have gotten some of her enerty back. And looks at Marco with puppydog eyes.

Not being able to resist the attack, Marco had to agree. "Ugh fine we'll keep him Star. But I'm naming him." Marco said.

"Yay! So wants his name?" Star said

"Hold on Estrella let me think. Geez" Marco said as he begins to think of a name. "Hmmm how about... Day. Yeah thats good. Day Lucifer Diaz."

"Woah, Lucifer? I think I'm rubbing off on you Diaz. About time too." Janna said mockingly

"It means Morning star Janna, it's not a bad name." Marco said as he rolled his eyes.

"Well I think it's a great name, it's really cute." Jackie said as she walked over.

"What do you think Star?"

"What?... Oh! yeah, yeah! It's a great name for a kid I mean puppy, puppy, yeah puppy name..." Star said nervously as she began biting her wand.

"Okay... then, Day Lucifer Diaz it is!" he said as he began playing with the pup.

 _'Stupid, stupid stupid!_ Star scolded herself mentally, _'how could you think that? he's your best friend! ugh. I mean come on woman. "That would be a nice name for a kid, I wonder if Marco would like that name for our kid?" Really?! Ughhh. What kind of thoughts are those! Sure dad likes him, and says that he'd make a fine king one day and yeah, he's really sweet and kind and selfless and strong and confident... where were we going with this?_ She thought to herself

"Star are you alright? You're kinda spacing out here" Marco said, worried about his friend, but before he could say anything else he felt something softly bite his heels.

Looking down he saw a pitch black puppy, quite the contrast to Day and Bleu. But he picked her up anyway, she looked like Day did but she was black, had chocolate brown eyes that were rimmed with green but other than that she looked like Day, oh except for the wings that is...

"Woahaaaaaa!" Marco said...er yelled. "You have wings!? Thats so cool!" The wings looked like bat wings but with a little bit more fur and feathers.

Seeing Janna's eye light up not unlike Jackie's did earlier, he decided to play with her for a bit.

"Wow, she's sooo cool, I'd give her to you Janna, but it isn't your thing right? And since I already named Day how about you name her Star? Maybe, Rainbow cupcake? How about Sunshine sprinkle? Or maybe Rainbo.." Marco was saying.

"Okay ok! Fine I'll take her!" Janna interrupted. "And since you named yours Lucifer, Day I'm naming her Night. Michelle, Night."

Marco just smiled and rubbed the top of Janna's head "Your choice troublemaker. Just don't scare the neighborhood too much okay?"

Janna smiled softly, enjoying the feel of Marco's hand ruffling up her hair. "Whatever safe kid." Janna said, as they made their ways home.

A couple of days passed and the weekend arrived.

Marco was running around everywhere dragging Star with him, buying food Marco doesnt usually buy, along with other party stuff. "Maaaaarcooooo, I like the whole running around thing but tell me whyyyyyy" Star complained as Marco dragged her by the hand down the street.

"Sorry I didnt say anything Star, but today is Janna's birthday!" Marco said as he dragged her in front of a normal looking house.

"And here is Janna's home! I mean you probably know this since you've been here already. Come on, oh and don't worry about a not having a gift, Janna said that Night was the best gift ever and she doesnt want anything else from you anymore." Marco said as he smiled at Star.

"Awwww, but why didn't Janna banana tell me it's her birthday?" Star asked

"Dunno, she told she wanted to surprise you or something." Marco said as he led Star down to the basement where everyone was. And somehow the basement looked like an awesome room for a party this time, (last time Star was here the basement was not this cool looking,) it looked like Marco's handy work, color coded bowls of snacks, with matching color coded plastic cups for the drinks, multiple plastic trash cans so clean up later wouldn't be so bad, coasters on the tables, a first aid kit on the tv, behind the couch, under the table... Yup definetely Marco's work.

Oh and by everyone, Marco meant Sabrina, Jackie, Ferg, Alfonso, Justin, Chantel and a few other girls Marco didn't know, but Star did as she waved and shouted "Hello everyone!" And they responded in kind.

"Hey guys, wheres Janna?" Marco asked and just like that he felt her hug him from behind tackling to the ground and softly biting his ear, making him blush, red like his hoodie.

"Jj-Ja-Janna!" Marco said as he got up.

Everyone just laughed at him, and after awhile he laughed too.

"Okay, lets get this party started!" Janna said as she turned on the music.

After the initial rave died down, everyone was chatting and eating the snacks Marco had bought earlier. _'So thats why Marco bought those'_ Star thought.

"Okay, so time for some karaoke. Everyone line up!" Janna said. "You know my rules right? I choose who sings first, and I choose you, Star butterfly." Janna says as she points the mic at her Mewnian friend.

"...because I love the way you lie, love the way you lie, love the way you lie..." Star finsihed the song picked for her and bowed. "So what did you guys think?"

Everyone but Marco had a shocked look on their faces. "Star butterfly rules!" Justin shouts and everyone cheers.

"Okay where did you learn to rap like that Star? I'm impressed" Jackie said. At this Marco paled up and desperately gestured to Star 'no! no, don't tell them!'

"Oh that's easy, Marco thought me!" Star said with a smile.

Like clockwork, everyone turned to look at Marco with eyes wide. _'The safekid raps?'_

"Well, well well~ looks like we know who's singing next." Janna said. "And I'm Picking the song, dont worry its an old fav of yours Marco." Janna added.

Marco just gulps in fear.

Thinking it's just gonna be Space Unicorn, Star excuses her to get a quick glass of water and says hello to one of Janna's sisters.

When she got back down the basement though, her ears were met with the heavy and fast beat of a rock song along with... _'Is that Marco?'_ when she got to where they were she dropped her wand in shocked, luckily no one seemed noticed, (but someone did, a certain beanie wearkng someone.) her mouth swung open, much like the others who were looking at Marco sing, his voice ringing loud and strong, with one foot forward and slightly bent at the knee his head was banging, his usually neat hair was a mess and some of it was partially covering his eyes.

 ** _"What if I say I'm not like the others?_**

 ** _What if I say I'm not just another one of your plays?_**

 ** _You're the pretender_**

 ** _What if I say I will never surrender?"_**

Star's eyes were on Marco the whole time, her heart marks glowing a soft pink light, her mouth chewing her wand that she picked up again.

Marco finished the song with a confident smirk, "How was that?" Marco asked smiling confidently.

"Wow... Not bad Diaz, didn't know you still had it in you." Janna said, "Okay, any volunteers?"

Jackie raises her hand and take the mic. _'Didn't know Marco could sing like that, and apparantly he can rap too, who would have thought that safekid Marco could be so much more'_

Jackie thought to herself as she remembered how warm and gentle Marco was when he hugged her, protecting her from that demon. Just as a blush was about to show itself, the song started and snapped Jackie from her thoughts.

 **" _Come up to meet you, tell you I'm sorry_**

 ** _You don't know how lovely you are_**

 ** _I had to find you, tell you I need you_**

 ** _tell you I set you apart,_**

 ** _tell me your question, ask me you secrects..."_**

As she finished the song, she looked back to an awestruck Diaz, sure everyone else looked surprised too but all she saw was Diaz with wide eyes staring at her.

After everyone had their fun, Janna said that it was time for a few games of Osama. A japanese party game where a King(in this case Queen as Janna goes first) say 2-3 numbers and who ever picks those numbers must do the thing the Queen says.

Unknown to everyone though, was that Janna rigged the first set, so when she said "five, six and one stand up!" Marco, Star, and Jackie stood up.

With a grin on her face, she tells them to spend fourteen minutes in the closet.

"Wh-what? No way Janna. No way." Marco protested

"Would you rather run naked in my sister's room for five minutes?" Janna asked

"Nevermind..." Marco said.

"It'll be fine Marco, come on" Jackie said as she lead him into the closet.

"Yeah Marco, it'll be fun!" Star said not knowing what exactly what this entailed(or did she? hmmmm)

"Just knock three times fast if Marco passes out" Janna said jokingly, but to her surprise heard three swift and loud knocks on the door three minutes later

And out comes a blushing Star with her heart marks glowing full red, and a furiously blushing Jackie, dragging a blushing and unconscious Marco out.

"Not. one. word." they said together.

"wow shoulda came in with you guys." Janna said.

After the game ended (Marco remembered nothing.) Everyone started going home til only the four friends remained.

"I had fun Janna, thanks" Jackie said as she hugged her and began skating home, "Hope you enjoy your present!"

It was an old book about plants and how you could use them to make potions.

"Will do girl! Imma try a love potion on Diaz first thing next week!" Janna said as Marco's face lost all color.

"Awwww wish I could give you something, Janna banana" Star said hugging the girl.

"You already did, come here Night." And out comes Janna's little puppy.

"The best thing is, I dont have to train her to be obssesed with Marco, she already is!" Marco once again, paled up.

"Now how about you go ahead Star? I'll catch up." Marco said.

"Okay! See you at school Janna!" Star said running off.

"Bold move Diaz, you gonna propose to me already? Didn't even use my love potion yet." Janna said with a smirk

"Please don't" Marco said.

"Anyway turn around." he added

"Oh, never knew you liked doing it like that." Janna said in a low, seductive voice as she turned around.

"Stop that!" Marco said. As he placed his gift around Janna's neck.

It was an emerald pendant with a silver pentacle worked into the bright gem, and in it's center was a small black bat made of some unknown material.

"You can look know Janna, I hope you like it." He said as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"……… I love it." Janna said softly, turning around she had tears in her eyes. "I love it Marco."

Marco just hugs her and to his surprise Janna hugs him back and kisses his cheek.

"Thanks for being an awesome friend Marco." Janna said.

Marco just rubbed the top of her head and smiled. "Same to you Janna."

"See you in class safekid!" Janna called out to Marco as he walked on

"You too troublemaker!" Marco answered.

"Dork..." Janna said softly as she smiled.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 **Yaaay! Chaper is done. I really liked this chapter you know. Sorry it came out later than expected. Oh and no Bleu is not a misspelling, And yes I gave Janna an older and younger sister. Hope you enjoyed this. Dont be afraid to ask me questions.**

 **Ps. I do not own any of the songs I wrote here, rights go to rightful owners.**

 **Pps. same goes with the story, i do not own the characters other than my own original characters and my idea for this particular story.**


	6. A glimpse into the void

**Hey, here's a small teaser for you loves, hope you enjoy it!**

 **Void**

 ** _"Mewni... such a pathetic and worthless excuse for a kingdom. I can feel the magic flowing from it, like blood from a wound. Disgusting."_** said a voice laced with malice, off in the dark.

"Do you wish for me to begin my part, Master?" Said a voice belonging to a lizard monster, who, oddly enough, was dressed in a suit looking very much like a lawyer.

 ** _"Do as you will Toffee. And for the love of corn would you change your name already, I'm a leader damn it, and hearing my voice say "Toffee" is rather debilitating." The voice said._**

"Hmmmmm... nope, I'd very much prefer to keep my name." Said the lizard in a calm manner, before walking into a swirling portal.

" _Sigh... **Old friend, your trust may very well be misplaced, though it is appreciated."**_ Said the voice.

Adorning the wall infront of the dark silhouette belonging to the voice, is a grim collection of skulls ranging from normal looking human skulls, to more demonic ones, some cracked, some had horns, some had three eye sockets.

But most notably is the lone skull in the center of the gothic collection, for this skull had a pair of butterfly marks adorning it's cheeks.

 _ **"After all these years, your magic still courses through my wretched veins,** sigh... **I miss you my heartache,** **my** **Nova** , **my love**_ " said the voice, with a melancholic tone.

 _"I miss the feel of hair, your scent, your kisses, **your fading heartbeat as choked the life out of your bleeding corpse."**_ The voice ended, with scorn dripping with every word

 **Ummm was that too much? Well tell me what you guys think! Hope you liked it. Maybe I could finish the space squid chapter later, but I'm not too sure.**


	7. Beach day shenanigans

**Woo! Finally this is one out. Hope you like it. And without further ado, I give you this chapter.** *Jazz hands*

 **{ I apologize in advance here for that one thing I wrote here, I couldn't resist xD }**

 **Chapter 6**

 **Beach Day Shenanigans**

The sound of clashing swords were reverberating in the room in a slow steady rhythm and then very quickly turned faster, louder, more violent then just as quickly ended.

"With every swing you take and give, you learn. You are most definetely getting better young one" said a gruff but gentle sounding voice.

"Thanks, but I still can't beat you though." Marco said sheepishly as he enjoyed the feel of the cool ground, doing wonders for his aching body.

"Ha. You are much to young to even start thinking that Marco, I was the best sword fighter Mewni has ever seen." He said as he smiled down as at his fallen pupil lying down on the ground, a content smile upon the boy's face.

"So you say" Marco said with a laugh.

"Still though, can't believe that a human was the best swordsman Mewni ever had, I thought Mewmans were stronger than us?" He added, as he got back up and got into a ready position, sword drawn and at the ready.

"Hahahaha that's true, but take a look at me boy." He said.

Marco complied, lowering his weapon. He looked at the blue spirit, a soul echo as Glossaryck would say, of a man standing roughly around six foot two, he had the build of a bear, his golden hair that was tied in a ponytail and his huge beard made most vikings feel insecure, a faded scar ran down the side of his face but his eyes were soft and gentle, his smile even more so.

"I look intimidating don't I, look about as strong as a mewman right? Probably look like I could even level a house with my fist" he asked, Marco only nodded.

"Well that's what they thought too, I mean it was true, but that's not the point the point is that I became the greatest swordsman of all time by using my wits, I changed stances mid fight, I developed my own styles of fighting, heck I even used my boot to take out an army once!"

"What I'm saying here Marco is that raw strength can only get you so far, you also need the brains to out smart and out maneuver your foes on the battlefield, you must adapt to the situation at hand and... you must always be prepared!"

He said quickly as he raised his hand and let loose a blast of energy sending Marco flying back, but the boy managed to recover and land of his feet, only to lose balance and fall to his knee, he stabbed his sword into the ground to stop him from completely falling over.

"Heh, didn't fall over for once" Marco said resuming his stance "Pretty great move though, Sir Alarick, maybe you could teach it to me?"

"In due time my boy, but if you really wanted to learn powerful spells you should've seen my old friend Dresden he was quite the spellslinger." Alarick said, resuming his stance, his sword at the ready.

"I thought Mewni only had female spellcasters." Marco said

"Never said he was mewman boy. He was a human, like me and you, or like that Janna girl you talked about. And speaking of which have you asked them that question yet?"

Marco frowned, remembering what he had to do when he woke up. "Not yet Sir. I'll ask them today"

"Very well then, now... **Dodge!** " The spirit said as he brought his sword in a downward arch.

 **-Echo Creek High later that day-**

' _Okay Marco you can do this, just go in, ask the question and go ou_ _t, that's not so bad right?'_ Marco thought to himself, as he paced back and forth.

' _Oh who am I kidding? It was gonna be super weird when he planned on just asking Star this, but now he **had** to ask Janna_ _too, after that incident with Tom a couple of weeks ago he couldn't stop thinking about her.'_

 _'Star's pretty open to things, and Janna's super weird and creepy they'll probably agree to this, but will I be okay if they do agree to this? I mean yeah it's my idea and we'll probably be having lots fun anyways, but still... Ahhhhhh.'_

 _'What am I thinking? If we do agree to this it'll be phisically and mentally exhausting for all of us, I mean doing it on my own was hard enough, now there's going to be two girls joining in too!'_

 _'And what if Star's mom finds out? That her only daughter and heir to their kingdom was going to be doing those things with me, a human! Two humans actually if Janna agrees to it too.'_ Marco thought to himself as he had one of his famous "Marco moments"

 _'Screw it I'm just gonna go ahead and ask them right now.'_ He thought.

"Now, where are they?" Marco said out loud.

"Who're you looking for Marco?" said a voice that immedietely sent tingles down Marco's spine.

"Uh ah er... Hey there Jackie, just ugh... looking for Star and Janna is all" Marco said

 _'Definitely not stuttering as much, but there's always room for improvement'_ Thought the boy.

 _'Heh cute how he's still so shy, at least I can talk to him without him passing out'_ Jackie thought.

"Oh? They're in Skulnick's room talking about a class trip or something." Jackie said "Come on, I need to talk to Star anyways"

"Oh sure" Marco said as he walked beside the skater girl.

"Umm... you know Marco, I ugh... I never really... you know thanked you, for saving me that one time." Jackie said, avoiding Marco's eyes, her cool girl persona crumbling a little.

"Huh? Oh that... Well no need to thank me Jackie it was the right thing to do,and even if it wasn't, I wouldn't have just stood around and let someone I knew since I was six get hurt" Marco said with a small smile on his face.

"Besides, if I did I don't think my Grandpa would ever forgive me when I eventually see him again." Marco said with a laugh, fondly remembering his childhood memories.

Jackie just giggled. "All the same Marco, thank you. And it wouldn't kill you to call me your friend you know." she said as she kissed his cheek.

"My way of saying thanks Marco, you were my hero that day you know." Jackie said with another giggle as she saw Marco's shocked and blushing face.

 **"*incoherent babbling as Marco has lost all ability to speak*"**

"Ahahahahh, come on Marco they're over there." Jackie said as she rode her board for the remaining few feet, giving Marco ample time to recover as he ran to keep up.

When Marco got to the room he saw Star and Janna talking to Skulnick while they kept gesturing a piece of paper, Jackie who was sitting in a chair looked up to Marco and smiled before looking out the window again.

"Umm sorry, I'm not interruptting aything am I?" Marco asked no one in particular.

"Mr. Diaz, perfect timing actually, I need you to talk with these two, and make sure that everything is gonna go according to plan" Skulnick said while gesturing to Star and Janna.

"Right now though, I got to go. Mama has a hot date by 5!" She added as she got up and walked out.

"I'm gonna ignore that last part, well anyway, I needed to talk to the both of you anyway. So what's this plan Skulnick's talking about?" Marco asked as she walked over to them

"Actually why don't you and Janna talk it over for now?" Star said as she took Marco's dimentional scissors from his backpack. "Right now me and Jackie gotta go somewhere."

"Annnnnd she's gone." Marco said as Star and Jackie went through a portal.

"Well I needed to talk in private anyway. But ugh, whats this whole thing with Skulnick anyway?" Marco asked

Janna told him.

"No! nononononono! NO. Just no Janna! What were you and Star thinking!? We can not just have the whole class going to Mewni for a beach day!" Marco said as he paced back and forth, pulling on his hair as he did so.

"Do you have any idea how dangerous that place? They have a forest named The Forest of Certain Death! **Certain Death** , Janna! Who knows how dangerous the beach is gonna be there!" Marco argued with the girl

"Look Marco, Star said the beach was perfectly safe, it's apparently one the best vacation spots in the galaxy! Next to Mewni's corn products this is their next best source of income. It's just that Star somehow managed to get a day secured with not much people booked on the same time as us. We get the whole beach mostly to ourselves!" Janna said.

"Well that doesn't seem so bad I suppose..." Marco said, starting to calm down. "Well I'm going to need some time to set up the whole thing, how long do I have, a month or two maybe?" Marco asked.

"It's tomorrow." Janna said.

And Marco immediately exploded into one his Marco moments.

Snickering to herself Janna knew that she had to wait before she can properly talm to Marco about this, so she took out her phone and started playing some games.

"Oh, by the way what was it that you wanted to talk to me and Star anyway?" Janna asked, suddenly remembering why he was here in the first place.

Marco told her.

"Yes! yesyesyesyesyes! A million times yes!" Janna said as she fell off her chair and her eyes started to sparkle.

"When do we start? Lets do it now!" Janna asked as she grabbed Marco by the shoulders and shook him.

"We're gonna have to wait for Star to say yes though. And besides I'm gonna be planning this trip out first." Marco said as he took her hands off his shoulders.

And plan he did. He didn't even realize when Star and Jackie came back till he got face to face with Star's sky blue eye, sparkling like someone dumped glitter in them.

"Marco!" Star said with a huge on her face.

"Gaahhh!" Marco sreamed as he lost balance and fell on his butt.

 _'Sir Alarick is not gonna like me getting caught off guard like that'_

"Hey Star, I can see that you're back." he said as he got up.

"Yuuuuup!" she said, while she was giddily hopping up and down, clearly eager to tell Marco something.

"What is it Star?" Marco asked with an eyebrow raised.

"Weeeeell... a certain someone got you somethinggg~" Star said in a sing song voice before turning Marco around to look at Jackie, hiding something behind her back.

"Hey Marco." Jackie said with a wide smile on her face.

"Ughh... heyya Jackie" Marco said, not being able to keep the smile off his face from seeing Jackie look so happy.

"I got you something... wanna guess what it is?" Jackie said, her voice mimicking Janna's whenever she planned on messing with Marco.

"Uhh... ummm a gift?" Marco asked a sheepish smile on his face.

"Hahaha, well can't really say you're wrong now can I? Anyway here, I hope you like it." Jackie said as she handed him a small black box.

Taking the box and slowly opening it, Marco's face immedietely took on a look of awe.

Inside was a single black leather bracer, adorned with flaming blue and red yin yang symbol in the center, _like a wristwatch_ _but cooler_ , Marco thought to himself.

Carefully taking it out of the box he examines it and puts it on his left wrist. The feel of it is extremely familiar to the boy, it reminded him of some silimar tool he once had while in H-poo's dimension.

Thinking about his old equipment he tried something, concentrating just right...

And the bracer exploded in a bright blue light, creating a half dome sheild, eminating from the symbol.

"Woah" Jackie said "I haven't told you that yet, how'd you know?"

"Lucky guess?" Marco said. "I love it Jackie! But ugh... why give me a gift?"

Rolling her eyes Jackie just smiled, stood on her board and skated away.

"I already told you man, way of saying thanks" She called back, trying to wipe the smile off her face.

 _'The look on his face was adorable! Safe to say he likes it then'_ She thought to herself, still smiling.

"Hey Star che..." Marco tried to say but got interrupted by Star's scream.

"Yes! Marco that is such a great idea! How come I didn't think about this, Janna we are so going to have lots of fun! Glossy might annoy you to death but come on, training together! This'll be so much fuuuun!" Star said.

"But wait... you said this was Marco's idea right? Would've believed it if it you said it was yours, but Marco's?" Star said flubbergasted

Rolling his eyes Marco said. "Because Star, Janna was never that strong back then, that much power needs training and focus."

"And besides, if I don't keep an eye on her who knows what trouble she'll get into, she already used more magic in a day than what her body could handle, a couple of days ago and nearly passed out." He said as he looked at Janna with a slight glare.

"Hehe... you noticed?" Janna said shyly.

"Of course I did Janna! You almost walked into traffic, you looked like you had anemia, and you didn't even tease me once the whole day!" he said

" _sigh..._ anyway let's talk about this another day okay? I still need to plan the trip. For now just don't use too much magic Janna." Marco said, in a teacher's tone.

"K fiiiiiine." Janna droned on.

"How do you know so much about this anyway?" Star asked, wondering where her bestie could've found out about this.

"No secret really, I just talk to Glossaryck sometimes." He replied.

"You talk to him?" Star asked surprised.

"Yup, anyway lets go home now, wanna walk with us troublemaker? Marco asked Janna

Janna just shrugged and followed them out.

 **~Mewni~**

"Okay, so I've set up the first aid kits over there, along with stretchers in that tent over there, I had three extra life guards set up, you should all be with your buddies at all times, remember to stay away from strangers, wait an hour after eating before you swim and... they're already gone aren't they?" Marco asked without looking up from his list.

"Yup, they ran off soon as you all stepped out of the portal." Kelly said.

" _Sigh..._ ok fine whatever, thanks for the help Kells, kinda hard to set up a whole trip on your own in just a day." Marco said, rubbing his temples.

"No probs man, least I could do after you helped me out with that thing..." Kelly said, her voice getting softer at the end, her head hanging down.

"Hey, hey it's okay." Marco said hugging her. "I know how you feel, it gets better I promise, but until then let's go get some ice cream yeah?"

"Yeah ok, okay I'd like that. But it's your treat Marco" Kelly said as she ran off ahead of him, her hair, tied in a massive pony tail behind her, swaying in the wind

 _"Glad she's feeling better._ Marco thought

"Well aren't you the smooth talker." Janna said, walking up behind the boy.

" _Sigh..._ what do you want Janna?" Marco asked, feeling tired from all the planning

"I dunno, maybe a compliment?" Janna asked, leaning forward a little, a mischivous smile on her face.

"I mean, I did pick this bikini for you." Janna said as she showed off her two piece to Marco, it was colored green and black, and on the corner of her bikini shorts was a picture of red bat, she also traded in her beanie for a red trimmed white sun hat, and to finish the look she wore the pendant he had given her for her birthday, it was glinting in the light of the sun.

"You look great Janna." Marco said, avoiding eye contact with his face turning red.

"Heh, love it when your face matches your hoodie's color." Janna said smirking.

"speaking of which why're you wearing one now? 'shamed of your body Marco?" she teased.

"What's wrong with this? This is my beach hoodie." He said, gesturing to his hoodie, but this one's sleeves were a little shorter and the hood a white trim design.

"Just take it off will you?" Janna said "And where's Star?" she added

"Oh, I had her visit her parents, better to have Star tell them, and not have them finding out later." Marco said as he unzipped his hoodie and carefully folded it and placed it near his stuff, picking up his sling bag.

"She should be coming back in a bit and... Uhhh you okay Janna?" Marco asked, looking at the wide eyed Janna

"Woaah~ when did you get abs Marco?" Janna asked, and Marco could've sworn there was some drool on the side of her mouth

"I don't have abs Janna" Marco said, which was true, although he did karate and fought monsters almost daily his body was still lacking abs, or so he thought.

"And what do you call these?" Janna asked as she absentmindedly ran a hand from his chest to his stomach.

Marco was blushing at her touch, but managed to hold it together. "What, you like what you see Janna?" he said with a confident smirk.

"You're kinda all over me right now." He said with a laugh

Blushing now, Janna pulled back "No I'm not."

"are too"

"are not!"

"are too!"

"are not!"

They stared at each other before laughing it off.

And just then, a portal opened up and out came Star, in her usual teal dress, with her wand in hand.

"Hey guys! I'm baaack~." Star said.

"Hey Star, how were King River and Queen Moon?" Marco asked.

"Dad was fine, he asked how you were doing and wondered if you wanted to join a hunt soon. Mom wasn't there, apparently she had a meeting with the Magic high commission." Star said.

"Huh, well atleast they know we're here. And I'll check to see if I'm free to join River after our beach day, I kinda wanna relax." Marco said while stretching

"Come on let's go, then" Marco said

"I uhh still to change." Star said, her eyes unmoving after they caught Marco's body as he stretched.

 _'When did he get abs?'_ She thought.

"Oh okay, well I'm gonna go ahead. I owe Kelly some ice cream." He said running off

"Who's Kelly?"

"Kelly?

Star and Janna said at the same time.

They looked at each other and frowned.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Hey Kelly, sorry I took a while." Marco said when finally got to snack bar.

"Its cool, by the way here, I took the liberty and placed these babies, on your tab." She said as she held out two ice cream cones

"Wait, I don't have a tab here" Marco said as he took a cone from Kelly and started eating it.

"Well, you do now kid." The sloth-man-thing behind the counter said.

" _sigh..._ you guys take earth cash right?" He asked the sloth.

"Eh, cash is cash." the sloth lazily said as he started reading a magazine.

"Ok, we're good then." Marco said, continuing to enjoy the frozen treat.

"Though I am kinda surprised this isn't corn flavored " Marco said looking at his strawberry-vanilla swirl.

"Yeah, they're sold out on that." Kelly said, adjusting her glasses.

"Anyway, I got you that thing you wanted" She said as she handed Marco a bag. "though what you'd what with a bag of crystalized frie blossoms, I don't know."

"I'm using it to make something just as a precaution, a potion of sorts, how much do I owe you?" Marco asked

"Nothing" Kelly said, waving a dismissive hand. "You took me to the beach man, I kinda needed this so we're good."

"Yeah, but I still had you help with setting this up," Marco said. "Kinda doesn't feel right."

"Fine, there's a different beach here in mewni that I like, it's called the Lava lake beach, they have this thing called the soul rise. Take me there?" Kelly asked

Marco just smiled and nodded, finishing his ice cream.

"Well, I gotta go and take this home, I'll be back in a bit." Marco said, taking out his dimensional scissors.

"No probs, I gotta change anyway. Can't really swim in a sweater you know" Kelly said as she made her way to the changing rooms.

Cutting open a portal back home Marco place the bag carefully in his closet, along with all his other hoodies, and souvenirs from his adventures with Star and his collections from his sixteen year adventure in Hekapoo's dimension.

 _"sigh.._ hmmm, since I'm here I might as well say hi to mom and dad." Marco thought aloud.

When he got downstairs though, there was a surprising lack of his parents. And upon the kitchen table was a small note. _"Mijo, since you and estrella went to the beach, me and your mother decided to go out too! We'll be back before the weekend ends. Theres money for food on the fridge, take care of yourselves now!"_ _-love, your dad_

"There they go again" Marco said to himself, smiling.

Returning to the beach, Marco walked out of the portal just as Kelly was walking back, now in her swimsuit which was similar in appearance to Janna's but her's was aquamarine and didn't have the small bat, her sweater was also wrapped around waist.

"Hey Kelly" Marco greeted her with a smile

"Hey Marco" Kelly said as she sat back down next to him, looking him over.

"You know, it seems that all our training is paying off."

"What are you talking about?" Marco asked as he took out a lollipop and started to unwrap it.

"You're starting to have abs now, you know." she said pointing to his stomach.

" _sigh..._ for the last time I don't have [Kelly holds Marco's head and makes him look down.] abs... huh?"

And lo and behold he did have abs, it wasn't much, definetely not as toned as when he was 30 years old in Hekapoo's dimension, but his once flabby stomach was definetly more toned now.

 _'what the heck? when did I get these?'_

"I've seen better, but hey it's starting to show man" Kelly said.

"Woah, I didn't get abs until I was like seventeen in H-poo's dimension, I guess all our trai... uhhh could you let go of my face now please..." Marco said

"Mmmmhhh no." Kelly said, laughing before she let go and poked him in his mole. "poke"

Marco just laughed at this, poking each other has become and inside joke to the two of them.

But the two didn't notice the two girls who were staring at them.

"So... is that Kelly?" Janna asked

"I think so.." Star said now in her blue one piece swimsuit, her wings hidden from view.

"Let me ask ponyhead, she knows everyone. Star said using her wand to make a mirror phone.

"Hey Ponyhead! Ya know anyone named Kelly?"

"Course I do B-fly! I know ev'ryone remember?" ponyhead shouted.

"Anyways Kelly's cool, good friend to hang out with even better to fight with, chick's got a massive sword up her hair, though her boyfriend's annoying. Good thing they broke up, I know I'm like not supposed to say that but whatevs. Well I'd like to stay n chat but I got a thing here gurl, see ya love ya bye!" Ponyhead said as she hang up.

"Huh, well thats that. Wanna go swimming now?" Star said, a smile ever present on her face.

"Yeah, sure..." Janna said as she narrowed her eyes at the two teens, the girl having just poked Marco's face and them laughing about it. "But first, I got an idea Star."

~~~~~~~~~~~

Marco watched as all his friends from class were having fun, Al and Ferg were playing with a snail the size of a dog, Justin was playing volleyball with some mewmans and a demon, Brittany was ordering the staff around like she owned the place, and the others were just enjoying the beach in general, even Skulnick seemed to relax, Kelly was swimming some laps not too far from the shore and Jackie was surfing the waves.

 _'looks like everyone is enjoying themselves.'_ Marco thought to himself, letting out a huff of breath. _'I'm exhausted, at least everyone is having so much fun there.'_

Everything was quiet and peaceful, Marco was starting to relax. And before he knew it Star slammed a helmet unto his head and picked him up, slamming him into a massive cannon.

"What the heck Star!" Marco shouted.

"This is what you get for "cheating" Marco!" Star said.

"What are you talking about?" Marco asked

"I dunno, this was Janna's idea." Star said simply, igniting the cannon's wick.

"What? No, Star let me out right now! Star! Star? Staaaaaaaaaaar!" Marco shouted as he got shot out of the cannon, in a cloud of glitter and a trail of rainbow sparkles, disappearing in twinkling light high up the sky.

"Marco!" Kelly and Jackie shouted at the same time.

"Why'd you shoot him out of a cannon!?"

"What did you do to Marco!?"

They said as they swam towards the shore, the waves lapping the shore and their legs as the tide rose.

"Relax, he'll be back" Janna said, a small smile on her face.

"You better be right about that Janna." Jackie said, glaring at her friend.

"yeah... usually when people get shot out of cannons they don't really come back." Kelly said looking towards the sky.

"Name's Kelly by the way" she said, still looking at the sky.

"So... Kelly right? How d'ya know Marco?" Jackie asked, her head tilted to the side

"Hmmm, oh we met each other when we both bought goblin dogs and he was behind me in line, we got tired of Roy's games decided to chase him around, kinda became fast friends after that and we go dimension hopping from time to time." she said as she finally looks down.

 _'And there was that thing with Tad...'_ she thought to herself.

"Wait, you go on adventures?" Star asked, a shocked expression on her face. "Since when did you start? I don't remember Marco going dimension hopping without me"

"ummm about a couple of weeks ago, though we have been in some dimension where time moved slower, so it's hard to tell." Kelly said

Star was speachless.

' _How could Marco do that to me? He was my friend right? Why didn't he tell me, I mean it's not like he needs to be by my side all the time right? Just you know... most of the time.'_ She thought to herself.

"Hey, there he his, he's coming back down." Janna said.

They all looked to where Janna was pointing at.

"Ummmm... That's not Marco." Kelly said, her eyes growing wide. **"Everybody out of the water now!"** Kelly shouted, her voice ringing loud.

Not wanting to experience Mewni's version of a shark bite them, they all got out as quick as they can.

Just in time for a gigantic squid/octopus thing to fall from the sky, it was missing a couple of it's tentacles, nothing but bloody stubs left where they should've been, bleeding purple blood.

And it looked pissed.

 **Okay so yay? Yeah sorry this was planned for release a couple of days ago but stuff came up and it got delayed/revised/rewritten and delayed once again. Anyway hopefully I could finish the whole thing within a week. I plan to release a mini-arc of the things that was supposed to be part of this (two part) chapter hopefuly within two weeks before I move on to the next chapter.**

 **Also Star's wand is still whole here, and Ludo hasn't hired toffee yet. Marco just happened to meet Kelly while he dimension hopping looking for *bleeeeeeeeeep***

 **Pirate crew is introduced next part of this chapter. And no Marco will not be a harem king here, no matter how much it feels like it in this story(this might change, i dunno.)**

 **And thank Barbacar for Marco's flight lesson here xD**

 ***blasting off again***


	8. Beach Day Shenanigans 2

**Hey there my little doves, I finally got to write the second part of the chapter. I hope you enjoy this, oh and don't forget to live free, and enjoy all that life has to offer. Go on, smile for the world and for yourself.**

 **Chapter 6**

 **Beach Day Shenanigans**

 **Part 2**

It had been a couple of minutes since Marco's been shot out of the cannon, the helmet strapped firmly to his head, and his hearing finally seems to have returned as he can once again hear his own screams being ripped out of his mouth and into the wind.

His screams of terror were interrupted as a gigantic flailing squid was falling from the sky opposite him, screeching like a banshee, two of its tentacles were cut off and burning to ashes above it.

His thoughts immediately went to Star and his friends still down there.

 _'What the heck was that!? I gotta get back down there... Dammit I left my scissors, 'least I still got the bracer Jackie gave me.'_

Marco thought as he took stock of his inventory.

 _'And how the heck am I still flying? This much power should've killed me... Star probably used one of her spells.'_

And then an explosion shook the sky.

It was another squid-octopus thingy, this one bigger than the one he saw before, it's tentacles was wrapped around a huge ship- _a brigantine_ Marco recalled -double masted, a dozen cannons on each reinforced side, it's white sails tucked onto the masts, it's red flag flowing in the wind.

Marco was drooling at the sight of the flying ship, after ninjas, pirates were his second favorite, involving everything from movies to video games.

Then a second explosion rocked the sky, followed by a bright purple flash of light, it seems to have come from the squid's tentacle as it slammed down on the ship's deck. It didn't look like could take another blow, and it looked like the squid was rearing to slam down again. This made him him angry, he was not gonna let this _pearl of the sea_ get hurt.

 _'Pearl of the sea? Why does that sound so familliar.'_

Seeing the ship get closer, he mentally thanked Star and Janna for this crazy idea of shooting him out of a cannon, for whatever reason he was yet know.

Bracing for impact he holds the bracer in front of him summoning up the sheild, he slammed into the raised tentacle the sheild taking the brunt of the blow, grabbing onto the tentacle Marco rode the momentum, preventing it from slamming down again, and causing it to wrap around one of the masts once, the squid stuck in between it's own tentacle and the mast. And then following through with the motion Marco landed a massive kick in the squid's face right above one of it's eyes.

Somersaulting off the beast, Marco lands on his feet only to fall to his knee, feeling the backlash from the huge kick take it's toll.

He got up and took up a fighting stance, memories of his quest for Hekapoo come flashing back to him, gigantic prey were always his favorite things to hunt, they struck fear with their sheer size and strength, it was a sight to behold, the faces of awestruck people he had saved from such things even more so.

A wide grin was present on his face.

Until he saw the scattered parts of various robots here and there, a pair of legs belonging to a body that was half hidden in a hole in the wall, was dangling in a cartoonish style, there was even a couple of swords stuck in the mast.

A girl in a lab coat's arm was bleeding, and she was nursing a small robot that was making soft buzzing noises.

A big burly man with greying black hair was missing his robotic hand and he seemed to be in the process of reloading it.

A girl with messy brown hair was holding onto two small black orbs, stuck in a pose that seemed to say she was about to throw the orbs, she was short, and she had what seems to be an unlit cigar in her mouth _. 'that can't be good for her'_

There was also another girl standing above a platform near the foremast she had blonde hair like Star's but hers was cut just below her shoulder and the end of her hair looked to be dyed in an assortment of colors that was the visual equivalent of a rainbow guilty of aggravated assault, aiming two pistols at the squid.

And then there was a girl with long silvery hair, it's length almost rivaled Star's own, her attire matched that of a pirate, her skirt somehow giving her a regal look, she had a sword in her hand- _'it looks like a rapaier'_ Marco thought.

They all wore piratety themed clothes, the girls, the one with the pistols and the one with the sword were each wearing a three cornered hat, each had half of a skull and cross bones stitched into their hat. They all had weapons out, they were all fighting a giant squid that was attacking their ship, and they all stopped and their eyes were all on Marco.

"Uhhhh... Parley?" Was all Marco could muster up, still in his fighting stance, looking at them with a sideways glance.

The blonde girl had a wide, wild smile stretch across her face.

"Parrrrrley it is! Open fire!" She screamed just as the squid untangled itself was getting ready to attack again.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Staaaaaaaar? What the heck is that?" Jackie asked.

"Squid... thats a big squid." was all the princess offered, staring at the beast.

"Reeeally? I thought it was a chicken for a moment there." Janna said sarcastically

"Really? Seems pretty obvious that its a space squid, pretty high level too." Kelly said, a look of pure innocence in her eyes as she drew her massive sword.

"Ugh... nevermind, just get to shore and get the others safe then." Janna said, her hands burst into green flames, though not as bright as when she fought Tom.

"Yeah, come on Janna, we're gonna have sushi!" Star's wand started glowing pink.

"Gross." Jackie said as she started to make her way to shore.

Then the squid, seemingly heard them, got mad and started to attack. Whether it was mad that they wanted to turn it to sushi or that someone said the concept of it's flesh sushi would be gross no one knew. Really though no one needed to.

It's tentecles were lashing out, wildly destroying every thing near it, all the stuff near the shore was smashed or was about to be. The water was turning to mist at it's speed and strength.

"Rainbow fist punch!" Star screamed, shooting a rainbow colored fist aimed at the squid's face.

"Marrow blast!" Janna said, shooting green blasts of bones at the squid.

"Again... ew." Jackie said, sitting on her board now, unable to make it to shore.

"Uhh... ummm explosion sword!" Kelly said, not wanting to be left out, taking out a small sword and hurling it at the squid, embedding itself near its beak and true to her words the sword exploded, drops of its blood lightly sparying them.

"Again. ew."

But the squid was still alive, it was madder now. It's eyes were locked onto the trio that threw those attacks towards it.

It tried to grab them but Kelly protected the spellcasters, slashing at the tentacles that tried to come close, her sword not cutting the flesh of the squid but still sending it back.

"I can't keep this up, too many tentacles." Kelly shouted as she blocked another strike, then one more.

"We're not doing much damage here either." Janna said, summoning a red bat that flew to the squid and exploded. "Dang it. Nothing."

"Winter storm hyperblow!" Star shouted, freezing a tentacle, for about two seconds before it cracked the ice and finally broke it. "ughh! just die will ya?"

 _'They're not gonna make it at this rate. I need to help.'_ Jackie thought to herself as she stood up on her board.

"I'll distract it, you guys keep it up."

"Wha? Jackie! no, that's too dangerous." Star said.

"No worries girl, I'm in my element." She said with a smile as she sped off a, single wave driving the surf board and surfer forward.

"Woah, what?" Janna asked shocked.

"So you really are a mermaid!" Star exclaimed.

"Still not a mermaid Star." Jackie said as she sped off.

A purple light flashed in the sky, after a while it was followed by an unholy scream.

Looking up, Jackie had a feeling it had something to do with-

"Marco..." she said.

~~~~~~~~~~~

It was a chaos, no other way to look at it. But it was something they were all used to, even that boy that came from the sky and kicked the squid in the face was quickly adapting to the chaos, he did this stuff before. Thought the man with the robotic arm

They shot everything they had at the squid, but it was too close to use the cannons, the robots were all downed, even Val's "controlled" bombs didn't have much effect.

"Damn, we're getting nowhere fast. We need to rethink this." The boy said, he was defending Val and Lilly as they shot and threw explosives at the squid, together with Willow, but that strategy wasn't doing much.

"I need a distraction, and a bomb, I'll say when for the bomb." He had said.

"I got the distraction, get ready boy!" Morgan, the man with the robotic arm said. _'he better know what he's doing, this thing's an alpha.'_

"Okay, get down!" Morgan had shouted, launching a... was that a-

"Rocket propelled chainsaw?" Marco asked, dumbfounded. It had embedded itself near the squid's main eye, causing it to screech in pain. The boy was awestruck for a second before jumping up and grabbing the swords stuck in the masts, swinging himself up, "Okay, now!" he said

"Okay and now." He said, looking at Val, who tossed him two black orbs and another one that looked like a pinecone.

He grabbed one of the orbs, and the pinecone one, and he kicked the other orb towards the chainsaw still stuck in its face, exploding the chainsaw and blinding the squid.

It tried to swat Marco, only to have a sword get stuck in it's tentacle, followed by a barrage of bright lights hitting it over and over, it was Lilly and Willow, and for some reason Lilly also threw one of her guns behind her only to have it glow and fly towards the squid, exploding.

It got mad and let out a other screech this one louder, more debilitating than other shouts.

It's mouth was wide open.

Marco chucked the pinecone one first and the orb second, right down its open gullet.

He jumped to his feet, all that training seems to be paying off.

And then the squid exploded in a shower of squidy remains, somehow not a single person was hit with the goop. But the shockwave threw Marco into the main mast, hitting his head.

" _groan..._ Ugh, that hurt." Marco said, getting up. Only to be greeted by the crew of the ship, looking down at him, eyebrows raised. The two girls with hats seemed especially intrigued.

"Well, don't just stand there gawkin' like a hawkfin, put 'er there boy." Said the man with the mechanical arm, thrusting his normal arm infront of Marco, grinning and clearly wanting a handshake.

"The name's Morgan, tis a pleasure, ye saved the ship and our behinds there."

Marco tried to recall all that Sir Alarick told him about greeting strong warriors, 'respect costs as little as your breath but it can buy you your life', he'd say.

 _'Remember Marco, when greeting people of power, look them in the eye and relax'_

Marco did so.

 _'Good, now straighten up, but don't look too proud'_

Again Marco did so.

 _'now, with a strong yet gentle_ _hand, shake them properly, mind you, you don't try to do a deathgrip of a shake nor a limp one.'_

Marco did so.

 _'Now introduce yourself boy'_

With a smile, he did. "Name's Marco Diaz and the pleasure's all mine"

 _'Good! good! now ye- **you send all your bloodlust and killing intent straight into their heart!'**_

Remembering too late that it wasn't Sir Alarick who said that last part, Marco did this too.

 _'crud.'_ was all Marco could think of before a metal fist made it's way to his face, using the bracer he blocked it with the sheild, but the force sent him back into the mast. Knocking his head on it again.

"Oh damn! Sorry kid! Didn't know what came over me." Morgan said, rushing to the fallen boy.

" _ughhh..._ s'fine... m'fault..." Marco said, shakily trying to get back up.

"What the heck Morgan!? You could've taken his head off!" The girl with kaleidoscope hair said, reaching up and whacking him on the head.

"Owww... I didn't mean too, 'sides he seems okay"

"Ummm you okay there, uh Marco was it?" she asked, kneeling beside Marco.

"Yeah... yeah I'm okay" Marco said, getting up with some help from the girl.

"Well then the name's Lilly, co-captain of this ship, thanks for the help in killing that squid. First time we ever had to fight an alpha."

"Squid?" Marco asked, his head still hurting.

"Oh yeah, that squid" He said as he looked around and saw squid parts everywhere.

"Wait! There was another one, and it fell down there at the beach. I know we barely know each other and I know the ship may be damaged and you might have somewhere else to go but I need help, my friends are there an-" Marco's rant stopped by Lilly's finger covering his mouth.

"Calm down, we were gonna go kill it either way you know, now there's just the bonus of being able to help you here!" She said with a grin.

"Oh okay, tha..." Marco began to wobble ,his vision blacking out, getting hit on the head twice was too much for the boy, he fell forward though instead of the cold wooden deck of the ship he felt someone catch him instead.

"tha..n..ks" he managed to say, before completely blacking out, thin strands of silver dancing on the edges of vision.

~~~~~~~~

" _Ughhh_... My head" Marco groaned, waking up to three familiar spectral faces looking down at him.

Realizing where he was Marco glared at one face in particular.

"You nearly got me killed there! Could you please never do that again?" Marco said.

The spirit just shrugged. "Not making any promises, but eh."

" _sigh..._ Fine, just let me sleep." Marco said lying back down.

~~~~~~~~

Back on the beach the girls weren't having much luck with the squid, all of their attacks were just.bouncing off it, even Jackie was finding it harder and harder to dodge the flailing tentacles, just barely getting missed by the attacks as she sped around it distracting it.

"Ugh! If you didn't shoot Marco out of a cannon he would've been able to help! What the heck was that about!" Jackie asked.

"Now's not the time for that!" Janna said through gritted teeth, firing off a weaker blast than she was shooting before.

 _'Starting to get tired here, where the heck are you Marco?'_

"Guys it's gonna shoot again!" Kelly said, noticing a purple glow surround the squid's beak, enegry building up for an attack.

"I got it." Jackie said, summoning up a huge wave to slam into the squid's side, redirecting the blast away from the civilians.

"Ughhh! Where's Marco?" Star said

"He should be back by n..." Kelly started, but just then a resounding boom shook the beach.

"Fire everything!" Someone shouted.

And a barrage of bright explosions hit the squid. Lighting up the whole beach in the process.

When the lights died down all that remained of the squid was mush and a couple of tentacles.

"... ew." Jackie said, staring at the squid

"Jackie!" Star and Janna shouted.

"Huh? what." She asked, snapping out of her trance

"You have powers?/You're a mermaid?" Janna and Star said at the same time.

"hehe... yeah, I kinda do. And no Star not cause I'm a mermaid. I don't really know where I got thi... ship." Jackie said looking up at the sky, her eyes wide.

"Huh? Ship, what ship?" Star asked.

"That ship" Jackie said pointing up

They all looked up and yup. There was a flying ship comming down towarss them.

When it got closer they saw that there were people looking at them from the deck. And one of them was carrying Marco, princess style.

 _'What the heck happend to Marco!'_ Jackie thought, her fists clenched, the tide rippling around her.

 _'Why is she carrying him like that?'_ Janna thought to herself, her hands glowing faintly

"Marco..." Star said softly, her wand glowing green.

 _'Oh, nice to see Marco's fine, wonder if he'd mind it if I added a sundae special to his tab celebrate this...'_ Kelly thought

When the ship finally landed in the sea not too far from the squid's corpse the four girls ran up to it.

"Where's Marco!/What happened to Marco?/Why're you carrying him like that?/Cool ship." The girls all said at the same time.

"Woah, Woah, easy there." A girl with blonde hair that was dyed like a rainbow told them.

"First off he's safe. Secondly how about some introductions first. Name's Lilly co captain of this ship, and you are?"

"Janna"

"Star Butterfly"

"Jackie"

"Kelly"

They all said one at a time.

Good, now for the crew, she said, as she led them into the ship.

This guy here is Morgan, she said as huge guy with grey streaked hair came up to them.

"Great to meet ya, always nice seeing new faces." He said with a smile.

And this little cutie is Val, she said as she hugged a short girl with brown messy hair, a toothpick in her mouth, Lilly ruffled her hair.

"Could you not treat your **explosives** expert like that? I'm alsk the first mate here! I'm not a kid." She said with a huff.

"But you are a kid! You're a year younger than me, you're just thirteen."

"Whatever!" She said storming off.

"Hehe, so cute. Well there're supposed to be a couple more people here but they're in the infirmary getting patched up, most of the crew here are robots, all that's left is my twin sister" she said walking up to the mast.

"yeah that's good and all but where is Marco?" Jackie asked.

"Yeah... about that. I'm not really too sure why but uhh... my sister got attached to him." she said as she pointed to a silver haired girl, sitting by the mast, Marco's (still unconscious) head on her lap as she stroked his hair.

"Hey! What're you doing to Marco?" Janna asked, walking uo to the girl, only to be taken aback by a glare

"What do you want?" The girl asked, her tone sharp as a razor. "You shot him out of a cannon! What kinda friends are you? - "umm we shot Griffin out of a cannon a couple of days ago." Lilly said, but was ignored completely.- Who does that?"

"Look we were just having fun you know!How were we supposed to know a squid was gonna come and try to kill us?"

The girl opened her mouth to answe back but Marco began to stir awake.

"Uhh... My head." He said, clutching his head in his hand.

"Woah there, take it easy now you hit your head twice, just lie down for a little while" she said, her voice as soft as snow.

"Twice? Heh, that explains the headache then. Name's Marco by the way, don't think I caught yours."

"Willow, name's Willow." she said with a smile.

"That's a nice name" Marco said, a small smile on his face

 _'Wait, why is she looking down at me. And what am I lying down on..._

Realizing what he was lying on he shot up, his hands a blur in front of him, waving them erratically.

"Uhhb... uummm... so... sorr...sorryy" He stuttered.

The girl just giggled. "It's okay, you did help with the squid you know."

"Squid? oh right... Wait! There was another one! My friends are down there at the beach and there was another squid! We need to get there quick!

"Ugh... Marco, the squid is dead." Kelly said, with a small smile on her face

"What?"

~~~~~~~~

"And that's what happened." They finished telling the story and Marco's mouth was hanging open.

"Wait so you have powers too?" Marco asked

"Yup, had it since I was a kid, never used them though, dad always said it was too dangerous"

And suddenly the sky cracked open, and dark purple lightning struck the squid's corpse, causing the already mangled body to convulse and wither and boil. And from the bubbles out came humanoid shapes, made out of the squid's very own flesh and purple blood, and there's plenty of flesh left over for sa small army.

Alarmed by the lightning the whole group made their way to the starboard side of the ship amd watched in horror as a mass of shambling bodies were making their way ashore.

"Ummm... I never space squids did that." Kelly said, her eyes wide.

"They don't." Lilly said, her voice almost a whisper.

"Morgan! Vel! Ready the cannons, we need to thin them out as early as we can!" She shouted.

"Can't cap'tn cannons are down and we barely have enough power to fly, Harper's still out of it and Otto's busted. I can repair the cannon but I'll need time." Morgan said, his eyes never straying from the amassing horde.

"I got plentyleft, it'll have to do." Val said, producing a black ball out of nowhere.

"No." Marco said, his voice was so small it was barely audible of the sound of lapping waves.

"What?" Lilly asked, "Look Marco, I know you wanna help, and I admit your fighting is top notch bu..." She stopped talking when Marco looked her dead in the eye, there was no negotiation to be had.

" _sigh..._ fine what do we do?" She asked.

"What?" Morgan exclaimed, his shock echoed by Val's own.

 _'She never gives up command to anyone but Willow. Ever.'_ Val thought to herself, she wanted to ask it but a good pirate never question her captain, at least not when they're this serious.

"Morgan go fix the cannons and see if the others can help, Lilly stay here and give us cover only shoot those near us or about to attack us, don't go trying to thin out the herd, Willow will stay here and make sure none of them bother either you or Morgan.

Val I need you to follow me, Star and Kelly were gonna have to meet them head on and delay..." - "What about me and Jackie!?" Janna interrupted

"You and Jackie go to the beach, look for my bag and scissors go to the King and Queen and ask for help, send any knight you find on the way here. **Don't** do anything else. You're already both exhausted as it is."

And he was right, Jackie never used her powers much other than when she was surfing, and both she and Janna looks about ready to take a ten hour nap.

Reluctantly they agreed.

"Okay, were going to have to trust each other here. We don't have any other choice." Marco said grimly

When they got to the beach the zombies' numbers have already reached a hundred, and more were coming.

"Kelly you got any extra swords?" Marco asked

"Yeah, but it's about as big as this one" She said hefting up her huge sword.

"It'll have to do, can I borrow it?" Marco asked

"Sure." She said, casually reaching into her hair and pulling out a sword similar to her own, but this one's grip and guard were pure red.

"I was gonna give it to you anyway, you know as thanks for saving for saving me those uhh... *she starts counting on her fingers* five... no six times" she said laughing

Marco just rolled his eyes and accepted it, saying his thanks.

"Wait, when did you save her six times?" Star asked, curious.

"Long story Star, now's not the time though, they're comming."

" **You there** Someone shouted. "what do you think you're doing?"

"huh?" Marco said as he turned around and saw a squad of mewman knights making their way towards them.

"I said what are you doing!?" One of them said, grabbing Marco by the neck and pulling him to his face.

" _Chhhkk..._ _Try'nn...t'...'elp"_ Marco tried to say, getting the air choked out of him.

At this Star's grip on her wand tightened, with the wand sending off green sparks flying everywhere. But before she could blast the knight of Marco a huge blade came swinging down on the knight, making him dodge and drop Marco.

"You dare attack a Mewman General!?" He said, as he approached a ticked off Kelly.

"You're the one who dared to touch Marco! You prick!" She shouted back, raising her sword for another swing, but the general was quick on his feet and she got backhanded before she could do anything.

He drew his sword, ready to strike, but before he could another sword swung up to meet his and his sword broke in half, knocking the knight down.

He looked up to see who did this and saw a seething Marco, carrying his massive sword in one hand, his pupils turned blood red.

Grabbing him by his armor Marco pulled the knocked down knight up to his face.

 **"Take your sorry ass over there,** *Marco pointed towards the beach where civilians where gathered* **And make sure that no civilians get hurt, leave five troops here, take the rest and form a line there, Don't. Let. It. fall."** Marco said, his calm voice betrayed by the murderous look on his face. **Ha** , and why should I have to follow your orders, **boy**?" the knight asked, not at all intimidated by the boy.

"Oh I don't know... Maybe because he's my best friend, you know, little ol' me just the **_princess_** of Mewni is all." Star said, mockingly feigning ignorance.

At this the general's eyes widened and he was shaking.

"Y...yes princess. Will do. Right away." but before he could run back Marco grabbed his shoulder.

"One more thing buddy." Marco said, and very calmly and slowly he drew his arm back and punched him in the face, knocking the helmet of his head.

"Chhh... You..." He was about to say something but a glare from Star shut him up. And he made his way back, soon after five knights were making their way to them.

 _'sigh..._ thanks Star" Marco said, calming down, he bent down to Kelly and held her cheek.

"No prob bestie!" Star said, smiling her signature grin

"You okay Kells? Does it hurt?" Marco said, ignorant of the fact that his hand was gently caressing Kelly cheek.

"N...n..nooo" Kelly said, leaning slightly to his hand _'his hand is so warm...'_

"Ugh... you done yet?" Val interrupted, idly playing with one of her bombs.

" _sigh..._ yeah yeah, just making sure she was okay." Marco said getting up and turning to the knights.

"Okay I need you two to watch Val and Star, make sure our support doesn't get attcked. *they nodded.* And you three you're with me and Kelly, we'll be making sure not too many of them come shambling to the beach, were just here to hold for as long as we can and to buy time for reinforcements or artillery fire, whichever comes first. So the moment we feel pressured we back up and group with the other there." Marco said with the authority of a King and the confident voice of an experienced General.

"Here they come" Val said, throwing a couple of bombs into the horde.

" **As the moon rises and the sun sets, as the waves ebb and flow, I urge you, heed my call, hear my voice. Rise and crash.** _TIDAL SURGE!"_ Star said as a torrent of water burst from her wand and decimated the horde.

The three knights were fighting in a tight formation blocking what their comrades could not, and delivering blows when their comrades pushed the zombies back.

The two other knights were picking off stragglers that were making their way to either Star or Val.

Luckily the zombies were slow, otherwise they would've surrounded the group... or maybe not, as Kelly, despite her appearance, fought like a raging berserker slamming her massive great sword on three zombies at a time, her slashes always taking out more than two mobs at a time, she even spun around like a top a couple of times taking out groups at a time.

Marco on the other hand, was almost dancing, weilding the massive sword with grace and speed, he'd start with an upward slash, starting from his lower left side up to his right, spin with the sword cutting a wide arc behind and a little to the left of him, draw his sword close and thrust forward, drawing it back, he'd turn around and slam it down on a zombie who tried to attack him from behind, then he'd block and slash, not once stopping, the whole thing was one fluid motion.

This carried on for a while, Star and Val doing most of the work blasting group after group of zombies.

After a while their numbers seemed to thin, but more were coming.

"Okay, this should do for now, let's regroup and rest with the others." Marco said, only to be shocked.

Somehow a number of zombies slipped through and made their way to the line of soldiers, they didn't have any supporting AOE attacks like they did and they were struggling.

"Arghh... damn it. We gotta help them. And once again Marco was surprised, the ones they thought they killed were rising up.

They were outnubered 40 to 1. The knights could barely move, Val and Star couldn't keep up, they were very quickly being surrounded.

Flashbacks started flashing before Marco's eyes. A black horde charging forward. His friends screaming to charge. The sounds of explosions and roars deafening him. A single cry was heard over everything else, a little girl's scream abruptly ending. His friends falling face down all around him. The warmth of an orange portal. The light of the Sun shining on a once green and lively valley, now nothing but a razed and desecrated massacre, blood pooling into the river, making it run red.

And it was happening again. And once again he was powerless to help. He couldn't do anything, he was useless. Worthless. Pathetic! A waste of flesh.

 _"Stop that boy!"_ A gruff heavy voice said to his ear.

" _I gave you my blessing because I saw myself in you. I saw who you are, boy. You are none of those things."_ _"Use it now boy. The power is yours to use"_

Tears were streaming down his face. But he nothing if not determind, to save his friends to do what he could not have done so many years ago.

His hair was dancing on non existent wind. His eyes were glowing in a ghostly bluish white colour. Sparks of electricity were emanating from his body.

*

A portal opened up in Star's room, and out came two girls rushing in.

"Okay where's the throne room?" Jackie asked looking around.

"Relax, gimme those for a second" Janna said, reaching for the scissors and opening up a small portal and taking out a familiar red hoodie.

Raising an eyebrow Jackie looked on as Janna donned on Marco's hoodie.

"What? I'm not walking around a castle in just my swimsuit, maybe if Marco was there then maybe though..."

"Ugh... whatever lets go." Jackie said

"Hold on, here" Janna said, tossing Jackie another hoodie

"I doubt you wanna run around wearing your swimsuit either, unless thats what you're into, I don't judge"

"Ugh Janna! Now's not the time!"

"They smell nice you know, and they smell different from each other. *sniff* This one smells like primroses." Janna said

Reluctantly Jackie also smelled the hoodie.

"They smell like... lilacs" Jackie said, _'And a little bit like Marco' she thought._

"Well let's go look for Star's parents then"

15 minutes later*

"uhhhhh how big does this castle get?" Janna asked.

"Dunno, but we better hurry." Jackie said.

"Ugh! How hard is it to look for a King?" Janna shouted. _"much easier finding a prince"_ she added quietly, so Jackie wouldn't hear, a slight blush on her face.

"This is taking forever! What are we supposed to do? Open door number two and hope Star's parents are the price?" Jackie said, kicking open a door and lo and behold there was King River talking to Queen moon via mirror.

"Huh... Your Majesty we need help!" Jackie said

Moon only smiled, "worry not child the squid has already been defeated, Hekapoo has told me so."

"Sorry but it isn't the squid." Janna said.

Moons eyes widened. "What did Star do this time?"

"Wasn't Star either Ma'am" Janna said.

"Zombies, lots and lots of zombies, rose from the squid's corpse."

"By Mewni's wings." River said his eyes widening.

"Moonpie, let us go. Now."

"Yes. Hekapoo, bring Rhombulus and pick up the army too if you would." Moon said.

"Sure, but Muscles' there so I wouldn't worry." She said hopping into a portal. Rhobulus falling into a portal that opened up below his time out chair, where he was sitting.

Opening up a portal moon stepped into the room and she opened up another portal.

"Come now, let us go." Moon said

And they did, coming out of the portal they saw Rhombulus and Hekapoo getting ready to fight, they were all surrounded by a horde of zombies, Star's spells could be heard, but the girl was out of sight.

"The army is on its way, I opened up plenty of portals and they shou... wait do you guys smell that?" Hekapoo said.

"Huh? no." River said, sniffing the air...

"Oh now that you mention it."

"Smells kinda like sulphur... like ozone?" Hekapoo said, but before she could think on it a huge explosion rocked the whole beach, she felt it before she even heard the resounding boom or saw the bright blue light that blinded them.

When the sands settled they saw all the zombies surrounding them were either blown away or straight up vaporized.

"When did Star learn such a powerful spell?" Moo asked, awed at the sheer power of it.

"It wasn't Star..." Hekapoo said quietly

"What?" Moon said "Then who else could have done such a thing?"

"Marco?" Jackie said, seeing the boy in the epicenter of the blast.

"Impossible. He's but a human." Moon said, but true enough there he was standing in a small crater, as if he fell from a place high up.

He was gritting his teeth, tears were still falling down his face, his hair somehow looked longer, and it was practically dancing in the air, his pupil less eyes were pure blue, electricity crackling near them, his shoulders and upper arms were adorned with glowing blue runic tattoos, a similar runic symbol faintly glowed above his head before fading away. The great sword's blade in his hand was glowing blue, electricity was arcing from it to Marco and vice versa.

"Woah." Vel said wide eyed, marveling at the boy.

"Marco!? That was awesome!" Star said jumping up and down, shooting random cupcakes out of sheer joy.

"No way. The Blessing of Thor, I thought that ghost was just pranking us." Kelly said, wiping some sweat off her forehead, a wide grin on her face.

But Marco wasn't finished yet. He looked around looking for the source of the plaguing zombie horde, when he found it he saw more zombies were still rising from the corpse.

He lifted the massive sword above his head with both hands, and brought it down with a crashing boom, sending out a cresent wave of blue lightning towards the fallen squid. Causing another explosion that imploded in on itself, vaporizing the remaining zombies and the squid's corpse.

Star and Kelly ran up to him.

"That was awesome!/Dude Thor really did give you his blessing!" They said at the same time, but before they could say anymore they got frozen in blue crystal.

Rhombulus apparently thought Marco was the bad guy, as said by his gut, and fired off a crystalizing beam, but he didn't think that the two girls would run up to him, so it hit them instead.

"Oh opps, let me jus..." But before he could finishhis thought a massive blade made it's way to his head.

Dodging to the side, he saw Marco lift the blade up in the place where his body was not two seconds ago, and dash towards him swing the sword effortlessly.

 **"What did you do!"** he screamed, his eyes were now back to normal, albeit his pupils were red.

"Woah calm down kid!" Righty said.

"Yeah, we can undo it." Lefty added

"But we won't! you're evil! My gut told me so!" Rhombulus said.

It was the wrong thing to say. Immediately Marco came rushing in again, he wasn't speaking just screaming, nothing but rage danced in his mind. He thinks they died, he thought he failed as a friend. Again.

Rhombulus was nimble, he dodged a the boys attacks, he even got in a punch or two. But the boy was getting faster and faster. Each strike was inching closer and closer to his throat, his head, his heart, each one a lethal blow if it landed.

Rhombulus finally managed to to his left arm with a beam, but the boy only shattered it by punching Rhombulus with on the head. Knocking the blue crystal headed man down.

Marco grabbed him by his snakey left hand and threw him near the crystals, aiming his lightning clad sword at Rombulus' face, his eyes breifly turning blue.

"Give them back. **Now.** " He demanded.

"Alright, alright jeez man." Righty said.

"Oi! Dum-dum, you heard 'im unfreeze th...THE PRINCESS!??" Lefty said.

"oh we are in so much trouble." righty added.

And while this was going on the group that came to help was standing there, absolutely thunderstruck, (in more ways than one, as atleast one of Marco's attacks actually made thunderclaps,) their jaws were all open amd their eyes practically jumping out their sockets, he fought one on one with the Warden of the universe. And he won. He fought a semi-immortal being and won. Not to mention he wiped out an entire army of zombies with one swing of his sword.

 _'Interesting doesn't even come close to what this boy is!'_ Moon thought

 _'You've grown once again Marco my boy!'_ River thought gleefully

 _'Damn Diaz, guess there's more to you than your diary says.'_ Janna thought, taking another whiff of his hoodie she was wearing.

 _'And once again you surprise me Marco.'_ Jackie thought to herself smiling... and also taking a whiff of the jacket.

"And there..." Rhombulus said, his uncrysalization took longer than expected, getting hit on the head made it a little bit harder. "I'm just gonna lie down here.." he said as he snored away, already asleep.

"Uh... My head hurts" Star and Kelly said at the same time.

Marco rushed to hug them both, surprising both the girls.

"Wha... Hugs!" Star said hugging Marco back.

"Eeep" was all Kelly said, before hugging Marco back.

"I am so glad you're both okay." Marco said, tightening up the hug.

"Yeah, we're here Marco, no worries." Kelly said, rubbing his back.

"Yeah Marco we're fine-eeeeeeeeep" Star said, shuddering.

"What? What happened?!" Marco let go and looked at them.

"Nothing, just feel all tingly from hugging you, feels a little weird." Star said.

"Hmm, it's not so bad, feels nice actually... ha!" Kelly said, hugging Marco again.

They all approached the boy, feeling a little apprehensive.

"Marco me boy! Good to see you well." Rover said with a grin.

"River! Yeah, it's good to see you too your majesty, oh and about that hunt you were having..." Marco was saying.

Ahem...* Moon coughed politely interrupting their talk of hunting a jeweled beast of some sort, it's amusing how close they've gotten. The Queen thought, internally giggling.

"Oh, Queen Moon," Marco said with a full bow.

 _'wow, perfect form, most impressive my boy.'_ Moon thought to herself.

"Hey Marco, nice moves there" Janna said, peeking from behind the Queen.

"I.. It was nothing." Marco said sheepishly.

' _Wait, is that my hoodie?'_ he thought

"Nothing? Muscles you just took out Rhomby no sweat, not to mention you literally vaporized a whole zombie army." Hekapoo said, kicking Rhombulus' foot.

"Gotta say, I'm impressed, you did good." She said looking at the boy a small smile on her face.

"H-poo, wow, uh thanks." Marco said, it wasn't often the forger gave compliments.

"I told you never to call me that!" She said, stomping her foot and huffing angrily. Marco just laughed, with a smirk on his face.

"Wait, you know each other?" Jackie asked, also peeking from behind Queen Moon.

"Uh, yes I'd also like to know this." Moon said, curious as to how Hekapoo would have know this boy.

"Oh, well she's the Forger of the scissors, she was the one I had to beat in order to earn mine, we kinda became friends... somehow..." he said, digging for any memory he could find, it was all still fuzzy.

And once again, the King and Queen of Mewni were shocked speechless.

"H...how? What trial boy?" River asked.

"Oh, uhh umm, well I kinda had to chase her and her clones around and blow out her flames" Marco said.

"And you passed?" Moon said.

"Yup! It took a while but I managed to do it in sixteen years." Marco said proudly, before abruptly passing out and falling down face first.

 **Yaaaay! Finally finished with this. I apologize for the long wait for this, my whole week was hectic as hell and I had to write this bit by bit everytime I was free (it was horrible!) Anyway, the mini-arc I planned is starting to flesh out and you should expect some of them in between Chapters, randomly popping up. I apoogize for any and all mistakes I might have done here. Please tell me if there are any I will try and fix them as soon as I can. Anyway any questions? clarifications? violent reactions? just pm me and I'll answer (maybe saecastically) Have a great day! *sparkles away***


	9. Mini arc: Peace talks 1

**Okay, this is the start of the mini arc I was talking about, this'll take place usually days,weeks months maybe even years before where the current chapter is, it'll be side stories and filler episodes so to speak. Basically more for you guys to read and more for me write! Win win. Stay open minded and always look both ways before crossing the road. Cheers.**

 **Peace Talks: 1**

 **Nightmares and cereal**

It was a normal and peaceful night in the Diaz household, especially compared to last night when a sleep goblin thing tried taking Star's face.

Everyone should be sleeping peacefully now, yet somehow little ol' Marco was having trouble looking for sleep's calming embrace, instead he found himself in a nightmare's chokehold.

The room was dimmly lit, faintly glowing flames floating all around the room being the only source of light.

In the center of the room was the only other thing there, stairs. Beautifully designed wood and stone stairs, studded with various gems and shining stones.

Having nothing else to do Marco decided to climb up.

"Where the heck am I?" Marco thought out loud

No answer.

"Stairs are pretty cool looking though." he said, looking at the intricate design of the handrail.

"Marco?" A voice asked.

It sounded so familiar.

The soundwaves hitting his ears felt so nice.

Like they were the first thing he heard when he was brought into this world.

"Marco, where are you?" it asked again

The voice sent ripples of electricity down his spine.

A smile was on his face, he was enjoying the voice call out his name.

"I'm here." He called out, longing to hear it again.

"Marco, there you are, get over here already!" The voice rang out, somewhere above the stairs.

"Okay Star, I'm on my way." he said a small smile on his face as he ran up the stairs.

And he ran, and ran, and ran. There was no end. He ran, he shouted her name, he screamed but he was stuck.

Every step he took was taking it's toll on him, his whole body was getting heavier and heavier.

"Marco? Where are you!?" The voice was desperate now, Star was lost.

"I'm here Star! Please just wait for me, I'm on my way. I promise I'll get to you." Marco said, sweat was running down his whole body.

He was leaning on the railing now. His body was so heavy he couldn't move anymore. He collapsed on the steps.

"Not yet." He said through gritted teeth.

"Not yet!" he shouted, reaching forward ever so slowly, agonizingly slow.

"Marco..." The voice was breaking now.

Star was crying. Softly calling out his name.

"M...Marco... Mar...co... _sniff_...Marco" It was breaking his heart.

"Star! Nononono! NO! I'm coming Star!" He was digging his nails into the wooden stairs now, his fingers were bleeding. His hands now as red as his now sweat drenched hoodie.

He was crawling up. Step by agonizing step. A barage of colorful explosions was swimming in and out of vision.

Eventually the crying stopped. The voice was gone. Marco was alone.

He could move his body again but... he was paralyzed.

She's gone. I couldn't get to her. I didn't help her. I wasn't there for her.

Tears were falling down his face now. He was crying. He lost his Starlight. He was alone.

"St...Star... don't go... Star." He said in between sniffles.

"Star!" he shouted.

"Don't go, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." He was bawling now.

"Star. Star! Star... star..." he kept repeating her name. Hoping that it would bring her back.

 **"Wake up Marco!"** Someone shouted, shaking him awake.

Disoriented, he looked around. He was in his room, in his bed. He was drenched in cold sweat. Fresh tears were still falling down his face.

And beside him by his bedside, were the kindest, bluest, softest, brightest eyes, he ever saw, they could only belong to one person.

"Star!" He shouted as he lunged forward and hugged her.

"Marco..." she said as he gently rubed his back and played with his hair to calm the boy down.

 _'Must've been quite the nightmare'_ she thought as she thightened the hug.

"Are you alright Marco? I was on my way get a glass of water- _'better not tell him I was trying to get some of his cereal.'_ \- when I heard you calling out my name.

"No... I'm not... I thought I lost you, I failed you and you left. I'm so sorry. Please don't leave me." He said, not letting go of the hug.

Star grabbed his shoulders and pushed him gently away, never letting go of his shoulders, she looked at her bestie, the confident fire in his eyes was gone, the usual dorky little safe kid was gone, there was nothing but fear in her mess-up twin's whole being.

She held his cheek, rubbing it gently with her thumb. She reached over to his nightstand and took the fake glasses there, putting the on.

"Ahem... Star Butterfly, M.B.F. Marco's Best Friend." She said, imitating Marco PhD's tone of voice. "You Marco Ubaldo Diaz are awesome, you never failed and you never will, I will always be by your side I will **never** let you go. I promise." She said, hugging her bestie again.

"Now, I think I know what will cheer you up, come with me" Star said, leading Marco by the arm.

The next day, the sun was shining and the birds were singing. Angie Diaz was making her way down stairs _, 'I should surprise those two with Saturday pancake stacks.'_ she happily thought to herself.

But when she got downstairs she nearly tripped and choked at the same time.

There on the couch was Marco and Star, asleep, holding each other gently, almost like a couple, their friendship blanket thrown around them. And couple of empty bowls of cereal was on the table infront of them.

Smiling to herself, she took out her phone and snapped a pic.

 _'Another one for the Starco folder'_ she thought happily. _'At this rate Rafael will have to pay up way sooner than I thought! That's what he gets when he bets against Starco.'_

"Hehe, I think I'll make twice the pancakes now." She happily said as she made her way to the kitchen.

The mess-up twins just held each other tightly under the few rays of the sun that managed to sneak in, content in each other's embrace.

 **So, yeah this is done. I originally planned a different nightmare here, but my subconscious had other plans and gave me that nightmare instead, so I used it here. Next peace talks chapter should be after the next chapter. Cheers.**


	10. Insight

**First things first, I am so sorry this came out so late, I got sick for a week and I had to catch up on what I missed. Anyway I hope you enjoy this new chapter.** **Oh and I have some things to say at the afterword, stay tuned!**

 **Chapter 7**

 **Insight**

 **Part 1**

Marco woke up in a rather soft bed, his head resting on a pillow, his hair all messy. He was looking around the dull white room he was in, until he turned around and was face to face with Kelly, she was way too close for comfort, so much so that he could feel her breath on his face.

"Gahhh!" Marco screamed as he flailed his arms around and promptly fell off the bed.

"Opps, you alright Marco?" Kelly asked, concerned.

"Uhhh yeah I'm good, I'm good" He said, rubbing his head.

"Ugh, could you tell me why you were so close to my face there?

Kelly just pouted at this.

"Buuuu, you hate my face that much?" She asked, head tilted to the side, looking down at him her , having crawled across the bed.

"Nah, I've woken up to a loooot of things, I'd take your cute face over most of those things in a heartbeat." He casually said, stretching the kinks out of his, surprisingly sore body.

"Anyway where am I?" he asked, stratching his head and completely missing the blush in Kelly's face.

"Oh right! I need to tell everyone." Kelly said, snapping out of her thoughts and running off.

"Okay then..." Marco said as he got up the sat on the bed.

And a few seconds later he heard Kelly shout. " **HEY! MARCO'S AWAKE NOW!"**

"Jeez, for someone who's usually quiet Kelly sure can get pretty loud." he thought out loud.

And a few more seconds later he heard the door burst open and felt someone crush him with a spine breaking hug.

"Uurk... Kelly...can't breathe... here..."

He said, barely able to breathe, but managing to pat her head nonetheless.

"Hehe, just glad you're okay." she said as she let go.

And not five seconds after she let go the door swung open again, and once again Marco was crushed in a hug, this time by Star.

"Star... can't... breathe..." He wheezed, but still hugging her back.

"Heh, sorry Marco, just glad that yo..."

"Marco m'boy!" River interrupted as he ran into the room and gave Marco another bear hug.

"Gahh... River, nice to see you too." he said, patting the King's back.

"Now now River, let the poor boy breathe."

Moon said, walking into the room with Jackie and Janna walking behind her.

"Morning sleepy head." Jackie said.

"Heyya Marco, do you know you have cutest little snore when you sleep?" Janna said, making the boy blush.

"Yeah! you go all _'h_ _uuu nyahh huuuu nyaaahh_ like a little kitty!" Star said, imitating the noises he made, making Marco's blush deepen.

"Ghh...ch.. wha...Wha.. WHY WOULD YOU EVEN BE WATCHING ME SLEEP!?" Marco shouted.

"Cause you're adorable when you sleep" Kelly said.

"Yeah, that's true." Jackie agreed.

And Marco just covered himself with the blanket, a muffled _"guhhhhhhh"_ eminating from the covers.

Moon simply chuckled at the kids' little games.

"Anyway, Marco how do you feel?" Moon said.

"I'm alright, a little sore but I'm good, but ummm how long was I out?" he said, taking the cover from his head.

"Oh just a few hours, it's still early afternoon now." Moon said, much to Marco's relief.

"And well if you're feeling better, your friends and the people want to see you, it's not everyday someone saves them from a giant squid and an army of reanimated corpses. And mayhaps if possible, I request to speak to all of you later." Moon said, looking at all of the kids in the room

"Yes m'boy! The people really want to see you! You've got the makings of a true knight, you were simply outstanding there! It's only fitting you have a prize, your friends already got theirs and their medals not too long ago" River said, clapping him on the shoulder, almost dislocating it.

"Well for now we shall go" Moon said dragging the King with her.

"Rest well now, Marco, we shall return in a while" she said as she closed the door.

And now that Marco looked at his friends he saw that they did in fact have medals hung around their necks that and...

"Hey, why're you guys wearing my hoodies?"

True enough, they were all wearing their usual get ups just with the addition of Marco's hoodies.

"Oh, well Janna and Jackie were wearing your hoodies when we saw them and we wanted to wear them too." Star said causally.

"Uh that doesn't really answer my question, but... ugh nevermind. Are all of you guys okay? no one was hurt right?" He asked.

"Nope... Aside from you passing out no one got hurt too bad." Star said.

"Oh, and those pirates peeps were fine too, but they left soon after, they said they forgot something important and needed to get it." She added with a shrug.

"Oh yeah, those guys..." Marco said, scratching his head.

"Yeah those guys were pretty cool, a little weird though, anyway I need to talk to you guys, especially the both of you." He said, gesturing to Jackie and Kelly.

"Huh, what why?" Jackie asked, with Kelly just tilting her head to the side, a confused look on her face.

 _"sigh..._ Well I already talked to Star and Janna about this but basically we were gonna train together in order to help them control their powers since you have powers too I was wondering if wanted tag along, as for Kelly well I'm gonna need some help and Kelly's pretty tough and this'll help her get experience fighting magic users." He simply said.

"Ugh... my head's killing me, wish we didn't have to go to school on Monday, kinda feel drained from the planning and the squid." he added, massaging his temples.

"Hehe, sorry for making you do all the work Marco." Star said sheepishly.

"Nah, it's alright Sta..." Marco began.

"Okay I got this!" Janna interrupted and cut open a portal with Marco's scissors and quickly jumping through.

"Wait, what?" Marco said dumbfounded.

"Did she just..." Marco asked.

"Yup..." Jackie said.

"Oh gods I hope she doesn't burn the school down." Marco said as he facepalmed.

 ** _~Ripppp~_**

The unmistakable sound of a portal opening was heard, and everyone looked up to a freshly opened portal thinking it was Janna...but this portal was red one.

"Hey muscles!" Hekapoo said as she walked through.

"Heard you were awake so I came to check up on you." She said smiling down at the boy, peering at him through her fringe covered eye.

Kelly and Star were surprised to see Lady Hekapoo herself come and check on their friend, Jackie was just confused as to why this red headed demoness from the beach earlier was eyeing up Marco.

"Hpoo?" Marco asked, confused, but evidently pleased to see someone he considers an old friend.

"Wow, didn't expect to see you here, it's been a while" he said with a smile.

" **Don't** **call me that!** " she said with a huff.

"But yeah, just wanted to check up on you, last time you fought like that you forgot how to speak english for a week. Wanted to see if it happened again" She said, a small smirk on her face

"Ha. Ha. Ha. Very funny, the only reason I forgot how to speak english then was cause you made me read a cursed scroll while I was fighting!" he said, his eyes narrowing

"I didn't even know I wasn't speaking english. I embarrassed myself infront of the king then! I was lucky he had someone to translate Allionian to English for me."

At this Hekapoo just burst out laughing.

"Hahahaha, yeah I still remember your face when you realized you were speaking Spanish then, nice accent by the way Muscles." she said, wiping a tear away.

Marco just rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, yeah but thanks for visiting me... **_Bunny_**." Marco said, emphasizing the last word, a cocky little smirk on his face.

Hekapoo's arms which were crossed fell to her sides as a blush made it's way to her now embarrassed face.

"D-don't **_call me_** **_that!"_** she said, her hands clenched and shaking.

"Then what will I call you? You already told me not to call you **_Hpoo_** , and now you don't want me to call you **_Bunny_** What do I call you then **_Hpoo?_** " Marco said, his head tilted in mock innocence, the smirk turning into a taunting smile.

"It's Hekapoo! **Hek. Ah. Poo.** That's it nothing else!" She said, the flame above her head wildly dancing around.

"Oh. Okay then... **Hekapoo."** Marco said in his 'grown up' voice.

"Gaaaaaah!" Hekapoo screamed and leapt into a portal and leaping out of another one that opened above Marco's bed.

Rolling out of the way Marco barely dodged the flaming punch that split the bed in half. And then following up with a backflip to avoid a small fire ball. A smile never leaving his face as they continued to chase each other around the broken bed. With Marco laughing all the way.

The three other girls were just stunned. They just saw Marco flirt with a hot (pun intended) demoness lady, who was also part of one the most powerful magical organizations in the universe.

And Star and Kelly were even more surprised as said demoness lady was Hekapoo the forger of dimensional scissors.

Eventually Hekapoo caught Marco sitting on top of him, pinning him to the floor, her hands clamping Marco's hands above his head.

"Hah! Got you." she said, a wide grin spread across her face.

"Yea, you did." Marco said quietly with a small smile on his face, before he blew out the flame floating above her head.

Hekapoo just looked into his chocolate eyes... but before she could do anything else everyone's attention was drawn to the sound of a portal opening.

"Hey I'm back, and no I did not burn down the school." Janna said as she steped out of the portal, twirling Marco's scissors on her finger.

Only to have the scissors swiped from her hand by a very angry looking Hekapoo.

"How the heck did you get these!?" She demanded.

"Whoa chill, Marc-" Janna began

"These aren't yours! Why the heck are using them, these are Marco's! Not yours, his! He earned them **not** you!" She said, her flames dancing angrily.

"Hey, hey it's okay Hekapoo, I lent them to her, I needed her to call for help earlier, she didn't steal them" Marco said, grabbing her shoulders so that she wouldn't burn his friend to a crisp.

She looked at his hands, then into his eyes before letting out a sigh.

"Fine, whatever muscles, here" She said as she pushed the scissors back to him and opening up a portal.

"I'll be back. Seeya." She said as she walked out.

"What the heck was that about?" Janna asked absolutely confused.

" _sigh..._ That was Hekapoo, forger of the dimensional scissors" Marco said, looking at the place where Hekapoo's portal was

"And before anything else what **did** you do?" Marco asked looking at Janna who, to Marco's annoyance was also wearing one of his hoodie's

"Nothing much... just made it so that we don't have school on Monday" She said.

"Ugh... okay fine that's not so bad." Marco said.

"Also for Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday." She continued.

Marco facepalmed.

"Okay that's worse but atlea-" Marco began

"That's for the next two weeks..." She finished.

Once again Marco facepalmed.

"Here's the note" She said, showing it to Marco.

Marco read the note and just sighed.

 _'Yup looks like school really is cancelled for two weeks... is that blood on the corner?_ Marco thought to himself as he read the note

"What did you even do?" Marco asked

"Well first of all I..." Janna began

"Actually no, I don't want to hear it. This way the cops can't use me in court." Marco said, covering Janna's mouth

Janna just laughed

"Well, atleast now we some time to train you and the others." He said.

"Okay, umm just a question Marco why do we have to train anyway?" Jackie asked, having snapped out of her ealier shock.

"Oh, that's cause I don't want Star to burn down Echo creek, nor do I want Janna to accidentally summon a infinite amount of skeletons that take over the world nor, and no offense Jackie, do I want you to drown everyone. Just a precaution, you know better to have it and not need it then need it but don't have it errrr... experience-wise" Marco said.

"Wow, that's pretty mature Marco" Kelly said.

"By the way, I'm in, you know I'm always down to hang out with you" she added, with a shrug.

"Thanks, I mean I did spend sixteen years in another dimension, it's mostly blury but I did learn some things." He said.

"Huh... okay then, if you're there to supervise then I'm in too then." Jackie said, a determined look on her face

"Hey! Don't just say it's for us it'll be good for you too." Star said, a little annoyed.

"Ummm Star, I may be good at karate but I can't karate chop a building down" Marco said, his head tilted a bit.

At this the girls just looked at each other.

"Uhh... Marco what's the last thing that you remember?" Jackie asked.

"Umm... Well I remember holding the zombies back... and uh... that's about it. Why, is something wrong?" He asked.

"Dude. You really don't remember anything?" Janna asked.

Marco just shook his head.

"Well you fought all the zombies then but you died so me and Star brought you back to life, so you're a zombie now and you have to follow our every comma-" Janna's little rant was cut off as Jackie covered her mouth.

"Okay, well what **really** happened was weird, like really weird... You kinda uhh.. well how do I put this?" Jackie began...

"You went nuts on them dude! You were all _boom_ and _rahhhh_ and _pssuhh!_ With lightning and thunder and stuff! You were definetely like a warrior then, but you know more lightning-y" Kelly said, making noises and wild gestures as she said it.

"Uhhh yeah, that's about it." Jackie said.

"But where did you even learn to do that?" Star asked, her eyes sparkling, clearly wanting to try what Marco did herself.

"Ummm I don't remember really." Marco said honestly

"It was the blessing of Thor." Hekapoo said, much to everyone's surprise.

"What? Told you I'd be back, just went to change clothes" She said, which was true as she was now also wearing Marco's beach hoodie on top of an orange shirt plus black shorts, her usual black boots and red and yellow stripped leggings.

"Really. You too? I swear I'm gonna run out of hoodies one day." Marco said, his head in his hands.

"Awwww poor you, well too bad, 'cause I'm keeping this. It's a nice little change from your other hoodies I took." Hekapoo said, twirling around in her outfit.

Marco just let out a disgruntled _"Ugghh"_ his head still in his hands.

"Anyway, where and how did you get the blessing? Heard only very few people earn it, and honestly I don't really know much about it. I wanna hear everything." Hekapoo said.

" _sigh..._ fine. But it's a long story." Marco said, finally looking up.

Hekapoo just opened up a portal and took out snacks and several chairs for the girls. She also opened up a portal under the bed and replaced it with a new one.

"Talk." Hekapoo said, as she tossed a few chips in her mouth.

The others seemed to wanna hear too as they leaned in close, even Kelly.

"Uhh... what are you getting excited for Kells? You were there, remember?" Marco said

"Well yeah, but I love it when you tell stories!" She said, leaning even closer.

"Okay then..." Marco said, reluctantly

"It was about a couple of weeks after Janna's Birthday" He began, not noticing Janna grip her pendant.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Sorry sorry sorry sooooooorrrryy!" Kelly was screaming as they ran through the jungle.

"For the last time Kells no need to apologize. Just run!" Marco said.

They were both wearing their adventure gear, Kelly was wearing light leather armor plus arm guards, her usual shorts and boots, with her hair in a ponytail, Marco was wearing his black pants and boots from Hekapoo's dimension and a grey shirt covered by a black leather vest armor plus light arm guards and fingerless gloves and like Kelly he had a red scarf on.

~~~~

It had been an hour since they found the ancient temple hidden in the deepest part of the jungle, the temple itself was beautiful carved stoneworks, despite being covered in vines and trees it was massive so it was pretty easy to find especially with the help of a map and dimensional scissors.

Fast forward 30 minutes and they finally made it inside, Marco just had to double check that they had all their supplies and that they weren't stepping on any traps.

Another fifteen in and they found a huge room filled with dust and weird looking see through leathery rags, which Marco later realized were shed snake skin.

Kelly wanted to see more of the room though, so she stabbed her sword in the ground in order to bring out a torch, except instead of the ground Kelly stabbed something much softer, something alive, and it wasn't too pleased at having the tip of it's tail cut off.

It was a snake, a big one, a really really big one, it had a huge black head, it's eyes were full of malice and like it's head the rest of its body was black with lighter stripes appearing in a pattern on its back.

Seeing the giant reptile rise up in front of them Marco immedietely grabbed Kelly's hand and ran as fast as he could, they've been running ever since.

"We need to get to town" Marco said.

"What? I left my sword back there!" Kelly said.

"You really wanna go back now?" Marco asked as he pointed his thumb behind him at the snake chasing them.

"Okay good point." Kelly said.

"We'll get it back later." Marco promised.

"Get ready okay, I'm gonna open a portal."

Kelly nodded, running closer to the boy, readying herself.

Marco took the scissors in his right hand, he didn't have enough time to cut one the usual way, he'd have to make a quick slash.

Placing his hand near his left hip, he mimicked the motion of drawing a sword, cutting a wide slash infront of him, quickly jumping in with Kelly following through, the portal closed just as the snake closed it's maw right where Kelly was a fraction of a second ago.

They were both breathing heavily, with Kelly on the ground lying on her back.

" _Huff... huff..._ Sorry... _huff_ 'bout that Marco." Kelly said.

"It's... _haah..._ it's alright." Marco said waving off her concern, still catching his breath

"But Marco... you were really looking forward to this." Kelly looked at him and frowned.

Marco had a small smlie on his face.

"Actually Kelly, I only wanted to do this cause I wanted to cheer you up. You were just so sad after you and Tad, you know... I just wanted to cheer you up a bit." He said, shyly rubbing the back of his neck.

"I knew how much you loved to go exploring so I got us this adventure." he added.

Kelly smiled and hugged her friend.

"Awww Marco that's so sweet of you, thank you" she said

"But you know we don't have to go on a quest to have fun, I have fun just hanging out with you."

"Yeah, but I still wanna cheer you up, but for now how about we go get something to eat before we go get your sword, my legs are hurt and I'm hungry." Marco said.

"Sure thing, it's about lunch time anyways. And uh Marco, thanks" Kelly said.

"For what? I haven't really done anything to cheer you up yet." Marco said with an eyebrow raised.

"For being my friend silly. I uhhh... ever since I went out with Tad I've drifted away from everyone else, you're the first real friend I had in a long time..." Kelly said, her head hanging low.

Marco just grabbed her hand and led her towards the nearest tavern.

"After we get your sword we're getting ice cream, more specifically I'm getting you a salted caramel and roasted strawberry ice cream sundae" He said, it was more an order than anything else.

Kelly's eyes just went wide, with sparkles practically flying out of them.

"With sprinkles?" She asked, her mouth was already tasting the salty sweet goodness of that frozen earth food she fell in love with.

"All the sprinkles you want... And please don't drool on my hand again" Marco said.

Kelly just wiped her mouth and smiled.

When they got to the tavern Kelly scouted out a table for them and Marco went to order some food and to look at the available quests.

A lot of eyes were on him as he went up to the barkeep. Like wolves smelling fresh meat.

"Ain't ya a lit'le te fresh to be here lad?" A gruff looking man, who was sitting by the bar enjoying a drink asked him.

"Tougher than I look, 'sides I like the ale here, for once it ain't watered down piss like ev'rywhere else." Marco answered him without looking at the man.

A universal joke, see no matter where you went, no matter how shite everything is, be it from war, famine, or down right corruption, alcohol always holds it value, like gold only more valuable. And it worked, the man laughed at his joke.

 _'good, that's one brawl avoided.'_ Marco thought to himself.

"Ha, ye got spirit, I'll give ye dat lad." He said, raising his mug to the boy to which Marco responded with a nod.

After paying the Barkeep Marco went over to the quest board, _no use waiting for the food, they'll bring it out later'_ he thought to himself.

"Hmmmmm" Marco said, as he studied the board.

 _'Nothing new, just the same old stuff everywhere else'_ He thought.

But the feeling of someone tapping his shoulder brought him out of his thoughts.

"Oy, whadya think your doing? Quests' are fer adventurers only, not little kids who still smell like their mama's milk." A tall, heavily armored, gruff looking man said, leering at the boy.

"Quests are fair game last I checked." Marco replied, his tone neutral

 _'Never show a predator weakness.' he thought, remembering his maxim from his time in Hekapoo's dimension_

"Yea, to bloody friggin mercs and fighters who know what they're doin', not to some damn kid." He replied, his tone rising, his words slurred.

 _'Looks like someone had a bit too much to drink'_ Marco thought, smelling the scent of beer eminating from the man in front of him.

"Yeah, and what are you gonna do about it? You gonna let some kid show you up?" Marco taunted, ever so slightly shifting his stance, preparing himself for the hit to come.

The man just growled and tried to punch him, but Marco stepped back and grabbed the man's arm, using his momentum against him, he slammed him into the quest board, with a crack forming on the board.

Sitting up, the man rubs his head and gets ready for a fight, only to be stopped by a man who was only lightly armored, he had blue bandana and spiky blonde hair.

"Easy there buddy, let the kid go, he didn't do anything wrong here, besides he didn't mean it right?" He said, looking down at his drunk comrade and silently begging Marco to give in and let this go.

"Maybe I did, maybe I didn't. Just make sure your friend here doesn't go attacking any innocent civillians while he's drunk." Marco said turning around.

"Oh you little punk" The man said, as he charged at Marco, sword drawn.

Marco just hopped _back_ into the man, getting inside his guard and surprising the man, Marco then locked his right arm to the man's swinging arm and using his left hand, he grabbed the man's arm and once again using his momentum against him Marco slammed the man into the ground.

The man tried to get up again, but he was stopped by Marco's weapon, it was a blade glowing with silver runes, it extended from Marco's gauntlets passing over his knuckles and extending a good foot and a half, it hovered an inch above the man's throat.

"Woah... uhh could you uh please not kill my friend there?" The man with spiky hair asked, he had his sword drawn though whether it was to stop his friend or to stop Marco he did not know.

Marco just looked at the blade then back to the man holding it.

"Oh, yeah sorry I was just gonna stop my friend there but then you... you know" He said, gesturing to Marco and his incapacitaded buddy.

Marco just nodded and unclenched his fist, the blade dematerializing to nothingness.

"Well I don't really wanna start a fight, I gotta go." Marco said, making his way to Kelly's table.

Eventually Marco found Kelly among the sea of adventurers, reading a book, and sat down across her.

"Hey Marco, got in another fight didn't you?" Kelly asked, not looking from her book.

Marco flinched at this, and blushed

"Heh, yeah sorry." Marco said, rubbing his neck.

"For someone who's nickname is _"safekid"_ you sure got a knack for getting into trouble you know." Kelly said, stuffing the book back into her backpack.

"It's not like I go around asking for fights you know." Marco said crossing his arms.

"I'm just messing with you Marco, anyway our foods here." Kelly said as a waitress brought their food over.

Kelly immedietely dug in, happily stuffing her face and enjoying it, smiling all the way, Marco just chuckled at this.

"What? something on my face?" Kelly asked as she swallowed.

"Nah, it's nothing." Marco said.

Kelly just shurgged, and continued eating. Just as they finished eating three people walked up to their table.

"Hey man, sorry about what my buddy did back there, he had little bit too much to drink." said the blonde haired man from earlier.

"S'okay, man" Marco said waving him off.

"Look we wanna talk business with you." Another blonde man said, he was shorter than the other one.

"Ooookay, what do you want?" Kelly asked, looking at them suspiciouly.

"Not here, outside." A woman dressed in heavy plate armor, with long black hair and a katana stapped to her waist said.

Marco just raised his eyebrow at them.

"Okay... and what if we say no?" He asked

"Then nothing happens and you miss out on a decent payout." The girl said, shrugging.

"Meet us outside near the east gate" she said.

"I hope we see you guys there" The taller blonde man said, waving as he left.

"Hmmmm what do you think Marco?" Kelly asked him

"Well I don't really trust them, but it's up to you, you know." Marco said.

"What d'ya mean?" Kelly asked

"Well I did say I wanted to cheer you up, it's your day today, so choice is up to you" Marco said.

"Really!? Then I say we hear them out for now, and if it seems fun we go!" Kelly said

"Fair enough then." Marco said as he got up.

Walking through the towns, cities, and villages of other dimensions always intrigued Marco, but it was only recently that he started to write about them. Which he was doing so right now.

"Okay, so there's a shop here selling ward eyes, a blacksmith that specializes in special ores and alloys, plus there's supposed to a few groves of iron wood and cobalt bark trees near here." Marco said as he wrote those down on his little notebook.

"You really like writing these things, don't you?" Kelly asked, looking at his notes.

"Yeah, it helps me think ahead and plan, but this is a rather new habit I picked up in Hekapoo's dimension." Marco said as he placed his notes away.

"Look there they are." he said pointing to the group.

"Well then, seems like someone decided to join in the fun" The shorter blonde said.

"My name is Aaron, my brother over here is named Andrew and this scary, armor clad girl is named Nikki." He said.

"We're part of the 'Singing Sparrows' guild" he added, showing them his badge with the two others following suit.

"Nice to meet you" Nikki said, nodding at them.

"Yeah, same" Andrew said.

"Name's Kelly, and this here is Marco." Kelly said, grabbing Marco's arm.

"Now what did you want to talk about?" Kelly added.

"Well we have a proposition for you, it's a job in a village near here, we don't know the details other than, a lot of mercs tried and failed already." Aaron said.

"We may need help, and since you look tough we thought we'd ask you, of course we'd split the prize 50/50. What do you say?" He said.

"Seems interesting enough but ugh, why me?" Marco asked, completely confused.

"Well first of all, you're tough, second is that your gauntlets I've only ever seen the higher ranked guild members use them, so either you're strong or quick enough to steal a pair from someone" Aaron said.

"Okay first of all, I based these off an assassin's weapon I found years ago and secondly I made them myself, I used my own blood to write and power the runes." Marco said, gesturing to his gauntlets.

~~~~~~~~~~~

"Woah woah woah, hold on. You made runic blade gauntlets? With your own blood too?" Star asked.

"Uhh yeah." Marco said.

"You surprised? I thought him the basics of forge-crafting, no idea where he learned rune work though" Hekapoo said.

"I learned from an old rune knight I met while I was wandering around." Marco said.

"Woah... And when did make those gauntlets?" Jackie asked, confused as to how Marco could've had that much free time on his hands.

"Oh I made them years ago back in Hekapoo's dimension. I just brought them with me when I came back." Marco said.

"Woah, can we see them? Do they still have blood on them?" Janna asked

"Sorry, they're gone now. One of them melted and the other one snapped off." Marco said.

"What, how'd that happen?" Star asked.

"Well you're gonna have to listen on." Marco said.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Well that's interesting, that's the offer, what do say Marco?" Aaron asked.

"We're in!" Kelly said, grabbing onto Marco before he could even say anything.

"Hold it. We've seen him fight but not you, we don't trust you kid." Nikki said

"Woah, easy there she's with me." Marco said

"And she's a great fighter." he added

"Gonna need more than words kid." Nikki said.

Marco was about to say something else but Kelly shut him up by holding his hand and nodding at him.

 _'I got this'_ she seemed to say.

"Okay, then let me just get her sword, we kinda left it at an old temple." Marco said.

"What? She can borrow mine for the meanti..." Aaron began

 _~riippp~_

"Or you could just use dimensional scissors. .." He said, as Marco stepped through the portal.

Five minutes have passed since Marco went through the portal, yet he still wasn't back.

"Uhhh you sure your buddy's gonna be okay?" Aaron asked

"Don't worry about him, he's tough." Kelly said, without her knowing her hand clenched the bottom of her shirt.

"Well anyway, why don't we get to know each other at least, we already told which guild we were in how about you?" Aaron asked

 _'Sigh... I might as well'_ Kelly thought

"It's 'Blood Rose', that's my guild." Kelly said showing them her guild badge, it had her picture and name on it, as well as the Bloody white rose insignia of her guild.

"Woah, how'd a kid like you get in?" Andrew asked.

"Fought my way in." Kelly answered

 _'That and aunt Elizabeth knew the head of the guild hehehe'_ she thought to herself.

"Does that mean your buddy is also from there?" Andrew asked.

"Nope, he's from a different guild." Kelly asked.

"Speaking of which your buddy is late, maybe he died, or maybe he just ditched you" Nikki said, interrupting them

"Marco is not dead. And he'd never ditch me!" Kelly said, glaring at the woman.

"Yeah? Then where is he, huh?" The woman said.

 _~Riippp~_

"I'm... _huff._. right... _huff_... here." Marco said as he stepped out of the portal, covered in cuts and a few bruises.

"Sorry m'late the snake kinda made it hard for me to get back; anyway here's your sword Kelly." Marco said, handing Kelly her sword, a huge dumb grin on his face.

"You look like a mess! You could've just came back here when you saw the snake you know. What am I gonna do with you Marco?" Kelly asked as she took the sword, a small smile on her face.

"Not unless you can stuff me in a bag a haul me around, nothing much you can do to me. Besides you really like that sword." Marco smilingly said, in a mocking tone.

"I can stuff you in my hair and you know it!" Kelly said, to which Marco just rolled his eyes

"Just go and fight already, good luck." Marco said, walking away.

"Heh, you still need luck? Guess your boyfriend doesn't trust you much girly." Nikki said, getting into a stance, and in addition to her armor she now had a visored great helm that covered her entire face and head with a horizontal slit in the front to provide vision.

"What? Marco trusts me plenty, he was just being nice when he said that... Wait... boyfriend?" Kelly asked confused.

"Nows not the time to be distracted" Nikki said, as she brought her sword down, aiming for Kelly's neck

"I... am... **not**...distracted." Kelly said, straining her body as her blade met Nikki's.

Kelly then suddenly pulled back, letting gravity do her work for her and making Nikki trip, spinning around, Kelly brought her foot up and kicked Nikki as she tumbled past her, a move Marco had taught her.

Having only added a leather vest, arm and shoulder guards, plus fingerless gloves to her usual outfit minus the sweater, which she switched off for with a plain white shirt, her lightly armored self had a major advantage in speed and mobility compared to the heavy plate armor Nikki was wearing.

But Nikki wasn't to be taken lightly as the hit didn't seem to affect her, as she was now charging in again.

Kelly was gonna block her against immediately thought against it and just dodged the blow.

She was right, the ground actually cracked from Nikki's strike, it seems that her sword has grown to twice its size, almost rivaling Kelly's great sword in size.

"Hah! That sword just for show girl? Why don't you try to fight back huh? Come on!" Nikki taunted Kelly, swinging her sword over and over and over again.

"Strength isn't everything you know." Kelly said.

"But if that's what you want then I be more than happy to give it to ya!" Kelly shouted as she charged in, trading blow after blow, steel rang against steel, sparks flew everywhere.

"Damn. She's good." Aaron said, in absolute awe of the sight in front of him.

"Hmpf, I told you guys she was a great fighter." Marco said smugly.

"Yeah yeah, you're proud of your girl we get it. Now how are we gonna stop them without them killing each other, or more importantly us." Andrew said

"Wha?? Kelly isn't... We're not... Okay listen here..." Marco stuttered.

 ** _BOOM!!_**

A resounding shockwave had snapped Marco out of his stuttering.

Kelly was on her knees blocking a strike from Nikki, her blade was parallel to her shoulders. Nikki's blade was inching it's way closer and closer to Kelly's face.

Marco wanted nothing more than to rush in then and there to help his friend but he knew Kelly wouldn't have wanted that. So he stood down and just watched with nervous anticipation as Kelly's hair began flowing around her and thick red lines began drawing themselves on Kelly's arms, it looked like red lightning was dancing across her skin.

With a swing from her sword Kelly managed to push Nikki back, but Nikki was able to keep her balance by stabbing the ground.

"Okay, I'll admit got some skill girly but let's see you handle this." Nikki said, as she pulled her sword out of the ground and began chanting in some language Kelly didn't know.

"For the last time my name is not girly, it's Kelly!" Kelly screamed as she charged Nikki.

Just as Nikki finished her chant her sword began glowing white, and she charged charged at Kelly, both had their swords high above their heads as they carelessly rushed each other, when they got near enough to strike however they were interrupted.

Andrew and Aaron were both blocking Nikki's strike, their swords were crossed and Nikki's sword was caught in between, both Aaron and Andrew's feet dug an inch deep into the ground from the power of Nikki's strike.

And Kelly's strike was deflected by Marco, since blocking it most definitely would've broken a few of his bones, using the blades of both his gauntlets and some basic sword fighting techniques Kelly thought him, he managed to redirect Kelly's sword strike to hit just beside where Marco was standing, embedding most of the blade into the soil.

"What? Marco? What's wrong?" Kelly asked, the red lines on her skin fading away.

Marco just looked at her with unamused eyes, before flicking her forehead and laughing lightly.

"You were supposed to spar lightly Kells" Marco said.

"But we were!" Kelly retorted, stomping her foot in anger.

Marco just gestured around him, more specifically at the mess around him. There were cracks and slash marks all over the grounds and a few trees and shrubs were demolished, a few passing people were watching in awe and fear.

"Oh... Hehe, guess we got a little carried away there." Kelly quietly said, rubbing her arm in shame.

" _sigh.. ._ It's okay don't worry about it, the important thing is that you're not hurt" Marco said, rubbing the top of her head.

"Well, now that that's over what do you think?"

Marco said, looking at the trio behind him.

"Is she good enough or what?"

"Yeah yeah,don't be so smug about it." Nikki said

"Well anyway it's about a couple of hours away from here on foot, but we have a coach ready so we should be able to get there in half the time" Aaron said.

Half an hour had passed since they rode on the coach and Andrew couldn't take it anymore.

"Arrgh, I can't take it anymore! That is the tenth time you've checked your bag and stuff and if you're not doing that you're scribbling something and muttering to yourself like a madman, you're driving me nuts here" Andrew complained, pulling at his black mess of a hairstyle.

To which Nikki responded by knocking him out with a chop to the neck.

Andrew promptly collapsed on the floor of the wagon like a bag of unconscious potatoes.

"Sorry, don't mind him, he's an idiot." She said, kicking her comrade's unconscious face.

"Nah, it's okay, I wasn't being too annoying was I? I just really like being prepared and making sure nothing's out of place." Marco said.

"S'all good, it's a nice change of pace from these two bozos who don't plan for anything and spend their free time drinking or setting things on fire." Nikki said.

"And hey, how long till we get there? My butt's not liking the seats back here." Nikki shouted.

"Just past a few more trees and we're there I promise." Aaron said, from the front.

"I swear if you answer me like that one more time I'm gonna ram my sword so far down your throat that..." She began but Marco tuned her out and began writing again.

'This place is nice, so much raw materials here, too bad they aren't as cheap as I'd like them. At least I can bring a few ironwood branches and cobalt steel leaves when I get back, after that all I'll need left are some frie blossoms and moonshade flowers! And some black powder moonshine would be nice too. If I can find these I can...'

Marco was thinking to himself as he wrote, but he was interrupted when the wagon stopped.

"Hey good news we're here!" Aaron shouted from the front.

"Ugh finally, my butt's sore now." Nikki said jumping out.

"Why does my face hurt..." Andrew said, as he got up, rubbing his face.

"You fell asleep and floor caught your face, that's your own fault." Nikki said.

"Ngggmmm..." Andrew growled as he got out too.

"Well, good to be out of that and into fresh air. Finally." Marco said, as he hopped out as well.

"Could you skip to the best part? I'm getting bored" Janna interrupted.

"Hey, speak for yourself I wanna know everything here." Hekapoo said.

"Besides, the more time I spend here the less time I spend doing work." She said as she tossed more chips into her mouth.

"Just listen will you? Anyway I'm skipping a few things cause they're pretty boring for a while." Marco said.

"Now where was I?" he asked himself

"We just got to the village" Kelly answered.

"Oh right, thanks." Marco said

"Well anyway, we met with the elder, discussed the quest, found out a few adults and children had gone missing and one thing led to another and found out that the clues led back to the original temple we were in earlier that day." Marco said

"Wait, how long were you in that dimension? I don't remember you going out for more than a few hours at most that week." Star said.

"Oh, it was like Hpoo's dimension, except like a day there in that dimension was equal to an hour and a half here." Marco said, getting hit by a chip Hekapoo flicked at him at the mention of her pet name.

"Anyway we were about to sneak back into the temple..." Marco continued.

"Okay, so we're going to have to make sure the snake doesn't see or hear us." Aaron said, making his way into the temple.

"Really? Cause I was planning on smearing barbecue sauce all over myself and shouting here snakey snakey, come and get me." Nikki said.

"Just follow my lead will ya?" Aaron said, slightly annoyed by her sarcasm.

Andrew and Nikki went and followed their leader, however Marco held Kelly back.

"Could you guys go ahead, I need to talk to Kelly about something." Marco said.

"Sure thing man." Aaron said, moving forward.

"You think we could trust him?" Aaron asked his team the moment they were out of earshearshot.

"What makes you ask that?" Nikki asked.

"You're getting more and more suspicious with age there brother" Andrew said.

"Idiot, I'm only a year older than you. And besides we don't know which guild he's from yet. I trust the girl, she's from Blood Rose, and she showed me badge." Aaron said.

"Hmmm.. then why haven't you asked him yet?" Nikki said.

"Umm... I forgot." Aaron said.

"Then it's your own damn fault then!" Nikki shouted.

"Oh shut up, if you didn't go overboard with sparring her then I wouldn't have forgotten." Aaron retorted.

"You sure about that? I find it kinda hard to believe you." Nikki said.

"Oh shut up, Andrew tell her it was her fault." Aaron said, looking forward, having stopped in his tracks to argue with Nikki made Andrew walk ahead of them, and there wasn't exactly enough light in the dark temple to see clearly.

"Wait... Where's Andrew?" Aaron asked.

"Huh? He was right ahead of us wasn't... Aahhhhhhn" Nikki was saying before she gracelessly fell down a hole.

Aaron just facepalmed at the sight.

Meanwhile as this happened, Marco was talking to Kelly.

"Hey Kelly listen, I wanna talk for a bit." Marco said.

"Sure, what's up Marco?" Kelly said.

"I just... Uhhh well I just wanted to say that if you ever want to talk, I'm here for you. I know we barely know each other and I can't say I know how you feel, but I was in a similar situation a couple of years back, I couldn't talk to my friends that I used to talk to every day, I couldn't look at my parents, I lost my two best friends at the time, I was alone." Marco said.

"Look what I'm saying is, I'm here for you, if you ever need a friend, an adventure buddy or someone to buy you ice cream I'm here for you... Maybe I should've just said that from the start." Marco said, rubbing his neck in embarrassment.

"Thank you Marco" Kelly said, hugging her new best friend.

"Now let's go look for them, they might think we're smooching or something." Kelly said as she broke the hug and went on ahead, hiding her blush from Marco, not noticing his own blush.

"There you two are." Aaron said.

"Geez, how much time do you two need to talk? Anyway look, my buddies fell down this hole and I'm coming after them, you two go ahead and try to look for the missing villagers" He said as he jumped down the hole, not waiting for a response.

After about half an hour of quiet exploring, Kelly decided she was bored with the silence.

"Well, looks like we're back where we started huh?" Kelly said, hoping to start a conversation.

"Yeah seems so.." Marco said, happy for the chance at a conversation, not talking was getting boring. But just as they were about to chat, the giant snake from earlier tried to tackle him from out of nowhere, only to have Kelly push him out of the way, getting caught in the snake's attack she got thrown right through a wall and into a wide open chamber.

"Kelly!" Marco screamed as got up and rushed to where his friend was.

Just as Marco entered the room he instantly felt something off, like the air was different here, and that gravity didn't seem to affect him as much, but he didn't have time to ponder it as the snake was rearing up and getting ready to strike at Kelly.

Marco was not about to let that happen, so he jumped onto the snakes back and dug both of the blades from his gauntlets into the snake, and hung on for dear life.

The snake thrashed and squirmed, trying its best to shake Marco off. The distraction worked as Kelly had enough time to get up and out of the way.

"Kelly we're gonna have to kill this thing. There's no way we can get the villagers out if this thing is in the way." Marco said.

"Okay, I'll try to get it's attention then." Kelly said as she jumped into the fray.

"Wait Kelly no!" Marco screamed, remembering just fast the snake was, when he retrieved Kelly's sword earlier.

But it was too late, it managed to grab Kelly's sword and throw her across the room.

"Kelly! Damn it." Marco cursed.

He began winding up his body and then he flung himself up, straight to the snake's head, and stabbing the left gauntlet's blade above the thing's eye.

"Dammit, I missed." Marco said.

At this the snake whipped its head to the side in a quick, violent matter. Throwing Marco across the room, the blade from the gauntlet snapped off and was embedded in its head.

It growled at Marco and but then it began to make its way to Kelly, who was still on the the floor recovering from the hit.

Grabbing Kelly's sword that fell right beside him, he rushed at the snake his eyes and vision both having gone blood red.

"Don't you dare!" He roared as he stabbed the sword at the snake's side.

It only managed to piss it off though and it began attacking Marco, trying to bite him, grab him, and it even tried to tailwhip the boy, but he was slippery, dodging the attacks and parrying the ones he couldn't dodge with the sword.

But he couldn't keep it up forever, his strength was running out quick. He was still in his weak fourteen year old body, he wasn't gonna win a stamina battle against this, so he had to do something else, something really stupid.

He looked at the sword and at Kelly behind him.

"Run Marco, you can still get away" Kelly said clutching her side, red lines were beginning to form on her arms, but the spar earlier plus being thrown through a wall had taken its toll on her and she coughed up blood.

Marco just smiled at her and he dropped the sword, just as the snake rushed at him face to face, with a defiant shout Marco rushed forward and he stepped on the snake's lower jaw, his foot was on the inside of the snake's mouth so he didn't impale himself on the snakes teeth.

Marco's left hand was grabbing onto the snake's tongue.

And his right fist was connected to the top of the snake's mouth, where the blade was embedded, all the way up to Marco's fist.

And as Marco removed his fist, he realized that the blade was blacked and sizzling. He also had one of the snake's fangs stuck in his arm, which was definitely a bad thing.

"Crud." Was all Marco managed to say before blacking out.

"Boy. Wake up. WAKE UP DAMMIT!" A voice had screamed at him

And he jolted awake, at least he thought so.

"Where am I?" Marco asked out loud.

"The Halls Of the Dead." A big man said, well big was an understatement he was easily seven foot tall, he was barrelchested and his gut was a smaller barrel. His biceps and forearms were thick as tree trucks. He was dressed in what looked like a mixture of animal hide and metal armor, the weird thing was that he wore an armored kilt, exposing his (also very muscular) legs.

He had an aura about him, making Marco tremble at the sight of him, that and his face was wasn't exactly easy to look at, the parts that weren't covered in hair beardwise and otherwise was a scary sight to behold.

He also had an absolutely massive hammer strapped to his belt, which made Marco pray that his belt would hold, he didn't want to find out what was under this man's metal skirt.

"Wait... I'm dead?" Marco said his eyes growing wide.

But before he could say anything else the man grabbed his face. Like his whole face in one hand, and lifted him to his eye level.

"If you start being annoying then yes you're good as dead." He said in an oddly soft tone, which made it even scarier.

Marco just shut up and nodded.

"Good. And to be blunt no, you're not dead, I just wanted to talk to you." The man said.

Marco just looked confused.

"Just listen. I saw your fight earlier, and honestly it reminded me of my youth. I can foresee great and dangerous things in the future for you. So I decided to give you my blessing, not many has earned this and honestly I'm getting bored so you can have it. Use it wisely and for justice." The man said.

And suddenly everything turned white and Marco shot up.

He was hurting everywhere. His arm was bandaged, and the tooth had been pulled out. He was sore all over, and his right gauntlet was missing. And for some reason he had the taste of blueberries in his mouth. But before he could check where he was he felt someone crush him in a hug.

"Marco! You're alive!" Kelly said, sniffling.

"Yeah, ummm I'm guessing it's thanks to you." Mark asked

"Yeah. Who else?" Kelly said in a mocking tone.

Marco broke the hug and looked at her, she had tears running down her face and for some reason her lips were coated blue.

"Wait, why are your lips blue?" Marco asked.

At this Kelly blushed.

"No reason" She said as she wiped her mouth clean.

"Okay then... Are you alright? And ugh how'd you fix me up? I thought I was a goner for sure." Marco asked.

"I'm fine" Kelly said, waving the question away.

"And uhhh, I used that cure-all potion you brought with you" Kelly said.

"Huh, really? Well just goes to show you being prepared pays off." Marco said

"Yup, but uhhh, I kinda panicked and used it all up on you." Kelly said, holding up a clear glass bottle with trace amounts of blue liquid inside it.

"Oh.. Eh it's ok. Just means that I'm gonna have a headache later." Marco said with a shrug.

"Anyway, let's go find those villagers, Aaron and the others may need some help" Marco said as he got up.

"No need for that kid." Nikki said, surprising Marco, making him jump.

"Could you not sneak up on me?" Marco said, glaring at the now laughing Nikki.

"Ghahahaha. Sorry, kid didn't mean to scare ya." She said, wiping a tear away.

"Anyway, we already found them, they were captured by a bunch crazy fanatics that wanted to sacrifice them to their snake god or something." She added.

"Yeah, and what were you two doing while we were there risking our lives?" Andrew asked, pissed that they had to do all the work.

Marco was about to answer but Kelly beat him to the punch, literally, as she punched Andrew across his face knocking him down.

Andrew just looked at Kelly in surprise, Nikki, who was standing beside him, looked more impressed than anything.

"You really think we were messing around, you idiot? We were dealing with that!" Kelly said as she pick Andrew up by his collar and threw him towards the snake's body.

While this was happening Aaron walked into the room.

"Hey, you guys found them yet? We're gonna need their help. I heard that the fanatics worshipped a giant snake that they thought was a god, here. We're gonna need to kill that thing so it doesn't bother the villages near here." Aaron said.

To which Nikki responded by taking his head and turning to where Andrew was, on the floor, and gawking at the massive corpse in front of him.

Aaron blinked at the sight and looked back to Nikki.

Nikki just looked at him and shrugged.

Aaron then looked at Marco's and Kelly's battered appearance and slowly pieced together what happened.

"Oh... Well then, looks like we're done here." Aaron said.

The walk back to the village a little noisier than Aaron and his buddies would've wanted, but they couldn't blame them, they were going back to their families after all, of course they'd be happy, some of them were busy making sure nothing takes the group by surprise.

When they got back to the village the sun was already beginning to set.

The villagers immediately ran to their families, and as much as they wanted to thank their saviors, Aaron and the others needed to rest so they made a beeline to the village's elder.

"Pardon the intrusion." Aaron said as he went in first.

"You're back... Since you have already returned so early, am I to assume that you are going to quit, like the others before you?" The elder said.

"Actually..." Aaron began

"No need to apologize son, I understand if it's too great a task." The elder said interrupting him.

"What? No, we're here cause..." Aaron started again.

"No it's very much alright my boy, perhaps it is time to tell the people that it is already too late" The elder said, interrupting Aaron again.

"Yes it is such a sad fate, however I must stand strong and I mhhmm...!" The elder was saying before, Nikki covered his mouth.

"Would you shut up for a second!? We came here to tell you we got them back!" Nikki yelled.

At this the elder's eyes began to fill with tears.

"They're back? They're all back?" He said, half sobbing.

However, upon hearing this Nikki began to lose her composure.

"N...no, not all of them made it back. I'm sorry." Nikki said

"Oh..." The elder said, as a single tear fell down his face.

"Although that is sad to hear, I am still very much glad that some people made it back,thank you." He said.

"Now let us discuss your payment." The elder said.

"Wait, there's something else." Aaron said as he begun digging into his pack.

"While we were there we found something that you may be interested in." he said as he took out a bundled... thing from his pack.

The elder gingerly took it from Aaron and unwrapped it. It was an odd looking idol vaguely reminiscent of a hammer, it looked to be sculpted from pure black obsidian and it had what looked like runic silver symbols on it, which looked oddly familiar to Marco.

"What is that?" Marco asked into the silence.

Startled by Marco's voice, he looked to the boy and nearly dropped the idol.

"It can't be. That's impossible." He said.

"What did you do?" He asked.

"Umm what?" Marco asked.

"What did you do?!" He asked more forcefully.

"I'm sorry but I do not know what you're talking about." Marco said, raising his left arm in a placating manner, he would've raised his right arm too but that was still in a sling.

"Boy... You've been blessed." He said more calmly and ominously this time.

"Ummm and? What does that mean?" Marco asked, thoroughly confused.

"It means that either your destiny is so convoluted and complicated that some deity or god thought that you needed help, or ,and trust me this is the better option, they were impressed by something you did and decided that they liked you. So tell me again, and I hope for your sake it was something extraordinary, what did you do?" The elder said.

"Umm I don't really know, I... I killed that snake in the temple." Marco said

"Snake? What snake?" The elder asked.

"Uhh... I dunno, the big one." Marco said. "Maybe it'd be easier to just show you." he said, taking out his scissors.

And show him he did, and luckily for all of them it was still very much dead.

Satisfied with what the elder saw, he gave them their rewards and thanked them one more time.

Aaron gave Marco and Kelly his mirror number and told them to call if they needed help with anything.

They opened a portal back to Kelly's house to rest up.

And right now, Marco was crashing on Kelly's couch, it was only a little past noon here and it made Marco a little dizzy, traveling from dimensions with different times always made Marco dizzy.

"Marco!" Kelly shouted, which surprised Marco making him fall off the couch.

"Ugh... What is it Kelly?" Marco said, rubbing his head.

"Look I found... Wait where are you?" Kelly said as she walked into the living room, not noticing Marco on the floor.

"Down here." Marco said as he sat up.

"Oh there you are! Anyway I found the thing!" Kelly said, holding out what looked like an oversized wine bottle.

"Uhhh and that is?" Marco asked, confused.

"The recovery potion, we talked about it remember?" Kelly said, making her way to the kitchen.

"I got it as a gift from my aunt, though she said that I shouldn't use it in battle cause it makes you feel weak after drinking it." She said, pouring some into a cup and handing it to Marco.

"Huh, thanks. Well bottoms up." Marco said as he downs the drink in one go, and then collapsing immediately after.

"Ah, Marco!" Kelly said, picking up her friend.

"Ugh... Sorry, I'm uhh I'm good." Marco said, standing up again.

"Ugh, Kelly does the side effects include hallucinations?" Marco asked.

"Hmm nope, not that I know of, why?" Kelly asked.

"Cause uhh... There's a ghost right behind you." Marco said, pointing behind Kelly.

Kelly turned around and the blood drained from her face.

"W... Wh.. What do want?" She asked, she was actually shaking which unnerved Marco as he never saw Kelly get scared before.

"Hmmm" The spirit simply looked around till his eyes landed on Marco.

"My friend asked you a question. What do you want from us?" Marco asked

"Did you forget about me already boy?" it asked.

"Uh..." was all Marco said.

"Yup, it's seems so." He said, pinching the bridge of its nose.

"Look long story short, my name is Thor and I gave you my blessings, as to why well you're gonna have to find that out yourself. Anyway gods aren't allowed to interfere too much with mortal lives so I'll be leaving now, I was gonna teach you the basics of your new powers but it seems you already have a decent instructor in here" Thor said, tapping Marco's head, before disappearing in a flash of light, leaving behind a faint smell of ozone.

Marco and Kelly looked at each other, both looked throughly confused, Marco noticed how Kelly was still a little shaky.

"H..how about we go get ice cream now." He said, and Kelly simply nodded.

"And that's about it." Marco said, finishing the story.

They all look both impressed and confused, except for Kelly who just looked tired since she did add some things to the story that Marco missed, important stuff like sound effects.

"Wow, that's interesti..." Hekapoo began, only to stop mid sentence and place her index and middle finger up to her temple and closed her eyes, concentrating.

"Damn, I have to go, there's another rogue portal opening up, I'll see you all later, oh and Marco" Hekapoo said, looking at Marco.

And a small portal opened up behind Marco's head a pale white hand came out and smacked the back of Marco's head.

"Mark of Hekapoo son!" She yelled as she jumped into a portal, laughing out loud.

Marco just grumbled and rubbed the back of his head.

"Well... That was weird." Jackie commented.

"Nah, that's just something she likes to do." Marco said.

"On much more serious note, I have a feeling Queen Moon would want to know about your, well our powers when it comes to that, I want you guys to not mention Tom attacking us." Marco said.

"WHAT?" Star screamed. "That jerk deserves what's coming to him!"

"Yeah Star, but I don't think a war between your two kingdoms is worth that." Marco said. "Let's just get stronger and take care of him together yeah?"

"Hmm... Okay." Star said, pouting a little.

"Well anyway, what was it Queen Moon said about the people meeting me or something?" Marco said, stretching, and groaning a little. "Yup, I'm still sore."

It turns out that it was just a simple enough awarding ceremony-esq thing, after a few words from Queen about how lucky their kingdom is to have such strong allies and that their princess is in good hands and is learning well the crowd applauded and began to disperse.

"Haa... Now that that's over, what say we have that little chat now hmmm?" Moon said.

They made their way to the throne room, where River was at and Queen Moon looked at them, her eyes lingering a little longer on Janna.

"Okay, I have but one question. What do you intend to do with your powers?" Moon asked.

"I understand that what all of have is quite rare, and you're all very much entitled to do with it as you wish, but I would just like to know what specifically." she said.

This took Marco aback, he thought for sure she would have asked for the origins of such powers but clearly he was wrong.

What surprised him even more was that Janna was the first to answer.

"Your Majesty" Janna said, with a courtesy. "I speak for all of us here that we all plan on using them wisely, Marco himself has offered to help us practice together with Star so we may further control our power and to make sure that we grow stronger in case danger arises."

"Oh my, well that's wonderful!" Moon said, gleefully "It is nice to see that my daughter has such capable and wonderful friends. This would very much help her master the wand" She said as a huge pink snail with wings flew across the room and out the door.

"Which is why your majesty, if possible for my reward I'd like for us to have a place to practice, maybe somewhere here in the castle perhaps?" Marco asked.

Moon pondered for a moment, before a small blue portal popped out of nowhere and Glossaryck popped into the room.

"There may be a better way, my boy." Glossaryck said,

"Whatever do you mean?" Moon asked her old mentor.

"Well you see your majesty, Marco here has a special ability, he has what's known as a mind realm, it's basically a pocket dimension but for the mind. If he wants to practice magic he can take them into his mind and do it there, that way there won't be any property damage." Glossaryck said.

"Wait? I can do that? How?" Marco asked,

"Simple, like this." Glossaryck said, snapping his fingers, and just like that all the teens collapsed on the floor on top of each other.

"Ugh, my head hurts." Marco said, as he got up rubbing his head.

"Woah, where are we?" Jackie asked.

"Oh this is awesome!" Janna said.

"Woaaaaaaah" Kelly said.

"This place is amazing." Star said, her eyes sparkling, the same look she has whenever they were gonna have an adventure.

They were in an expansive field filled with grass and patches of flowers, trees dotted the field in a disorderly manner. To their immediate left was a waterfall falling from a mountain side, to their right, across the field was a river and a across that from a distance a volcano can be seen. Behind them was a forest, teeming with the sounds of wildlife and in front of them was what looked like a dojo built into the trunk of a massive tree.

The sky was dotted with and endless sea of stars, and two moons one blue and the other light red, almost pink, was peaking from the horizon. The sun's rays were still visible and they were warm yet not hot, the wind was cool but not too cold to make them shiver.

And on their feet,a trail of twin blue flames lit up, showing them the path to the dojo.

"Welcome to my mind." Marco said.

 **And finally I'm done! (well not really as this is just part one) and what I wanted to say was that this story is gonna be a long one, like a really long one, we're not even halfway past the first arc yet! Plus there's also all the peace talks chapters. Anyway, this'll be a long ride and I hope to be able to have you all come with me, with Star and the gang and all their screw ups to come!**

 **Okay now for some other things. I'm gonna be using the term 'monster' in the future, and these monsters are more like wild beasts than the monsters in mewni who talk and stuff, they're just gonna be animal, wild, dangerous, bloodthirsty animals.**

 **And two, I'm gonna be bouncing the main crew from dimension to dimension, so yeah. Also yes Hekapoo is part of the main group, in the future.**

 **Three, the pirates will be back in the future.**

 **Four, Toffee hasn't really made his presence known yet, a couple of guys will show up before him.**

 **Five, here's a list of some of the enemies they'll be facing soon (just their titles not names so no spoilers here.)**

 **1\. The Harbinger**

 **2\. The Prince of Hell (we all know who this is)**

 **3\. The Fallen King.**

 **And a while lot more! What fun.**


	11. Insight 2

**Welp... This was supposed to be a peace talks chapter but I overhyped myself on the story here so this is what I wrote first. Also, writing this is so much fun for me, it really reminds me of all the stupid stuff I wrote whenever I had free time as a kid. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter.**

 **Insight**

 **Part 2**

The group was currently making their way to the dojo, the balls of fire lighting their path. They were still in silent awe at the sheer awesomeness of the place, Star was especially interested in the rainbow colored birds the left sparkles in their wake as they flew high above them.

"Marco... This place is beautiful." Jackie said, her eyes glued to the rising moons.

"Thanks, maybe I can show everyone around once we get used to this, this place is way bigger than it seems." Marco said.

"Really!? I can't wait to see all the cool stuff here!" Star screamed, jumping up and down, her cheek marks throwing off sparkles and hearts.

"I'm pretty sure you've seen a few of the things here already Star, quite a few of the places here are molded after our adventures you know." Marco said.

"Really?" Star asked, an unreadable expression was on her face.

"Yeah, apparently this place is **in** my mind and it's made up of my memories and at the same time it's a completely different place entirely. I know, it's confusing, it's still giving me a headache just thinking about it." Marco said.

"Woah, we're like, the same then." Kelly said.

"Huh, how so?" Janna asked, looking at the girl.

"I have a pocket dimension in my hair." Kelly said, taking her sword out of her hair to demonstrate.

"That is so cool!" Janna and Star said at the same time.

Jackie just looked on with a raised eyebrow, and a small smile on her face.

"And yet, that's not the weirdest thing I saw today." She said.

"Heads up guys, were almost there." Marco said.

And sure enough they were at the base of the tree, right at the dojo's entrance. Which confused the girls as they were still quite a ways off a few seconds ago.

The dojo itself was made from wood, decorated with jade symbols scattered in groups, the entire roof was made of red colored wood, and there were two empty pedestals besides the sliding door entrance.The dojo looked like the tree had grown up around it, swallowing half of it into its immense trunk.

Immediately after they went through the door they were greeted by a training room, similar to the one in Marco's karate dojo in Echo Creek, but bigger, way bigger and the walls were lined with racks upon racks of weapons of various kinds, rivaled only in number by the shelves of books reaching up to the roof of the place, packed with an unimaginable amount of books.

"Woah" the girls chorused.

Star and Kelly were eyeing the weapons.

Janna had her eyes set on the dark hallway across the room, curious as to where it leads.

And Jackie was staring at all the books around her, she had the same look Star has whenever Marco makes his nachos.

"Umm, well... Have fun I guess? Just be careful, if you get hurt here, you're body might not be physically hurt outside of my mind, but you'll get a headache if you push yourself too much." Marco said.

"We can play?" Star said, her eyes sparkling.

"I thought we were here to train." Jackie asked.

"And we will, but we already went through a lot today, let's just relax for a bit, yeah?" Marco said, as he walked over to a weapon rack, took a chain-sickle and did a few practice twirls.

"Okay, but do you mind if I read some of the books here?" Jackie asked

"Go ahead, if you want a book that's too high up just think about a ladder, and _poof_ it'll appear." Marco said.

"Oh and here's a book you might be interested in." Marco said as he walked over and took out a big blue book and gave it to Jackie.

"History of Mewni? How'd you know?" Jackie asked

"You always liked to read about stuff you wanted to know about didn't you? I just thought this would've been what you wanted." Marco said with a shrug.

"... Thanks Marco." Jackie said, smiling

"No problem." He replied.

Meanwhile Star and Kelly were already sparring. And Janna was checking out the books.

"Hey Marco, how do these books work?" Janna asked as she picked up a Math book.

"Ummm you read them?" Marco answered

"No you dolt! I mean how do you have full copies of books here if this is your mind? Did you like memorize all of this?" Janna asked, gesturing to the books.

"Oh, no not really, most of these are books I've already read and somehow they show up here, others are compilations of things I know about a certain subject, those books have a 'written by Marco' note on them." Marco said.

"There are even movies here you know." he added

"This place is so cool." Janna said, absent-mindedly flipping through a cookbook

"So Kelly, how are you and Marco you know... Uhhh related? Wait no that's wrong, like what **are** you to Marco?" Star asked as she traded blows with Kelly.

"Oh we're friends!" Kelly proclaimed proudly.

"Maybe even my best friend!" Kelly said, is a softer voice.

At this Star dropped the sword, a hurt look in her eyes.

Luckily for her, Kelly was fast enough to stop her sword midswing.

"Star? What's wrong?" Kelly asked.

 _"Oh, jealous, are we?"_ An unknown voice whispered in Star's ear.

"Eeep!" Star yelped and turned around so quickly and randomly shot a blast from her wand.

The blast created a miniature mushroom cloud in the middle of the room, when the dust settled a glowing blue man in a billowing brown coat, holding a rune carved staff was standing in the middle of the epicenter, his face was comically blackened with soot, his hair was blown back behind him, still smoking and glowing with embers, a frown was visible on his face. And what looked like a black cowboy-hat was falling from the air behind him.

And suddenly a very loud yet soft sounding laughter was heard.

It was a woman, a very beautiful one, in every essence of the word. Her figure made expertly crafted vases and figurines jealous, her emerald green hair was elegantly long, shiny and bouncy, her ears were pointed like and elf's, her lips were delicately red, she wore a crown of woven flowers on her head, her soft brown eyes sparkled with innocence, wonder and excitement. And the way she held herself showed that she knew just how beautiful she was. She too was glowing blue.

"That was very much your own fault, so don't you dare complain about it." A gruff voice said.

It was from another glowing blue man, who was tall, buff and was wearing a loose white shirt knight's were fond of, black trousers with accompanying black boots and a cruciform hilted sword attached to his back. He had golden blonde hair, tied in a ponytail, his bearded face had a scar running on the side of it.

"Oh, right!" Marco exclaimed

"I can't believe I forgot to introduce you guys." he said.

"Ehhh?" The girls said in unison.

"Right, okay so these guys are spirit echoes." Marco began.

At this Janna immediately had a look of understanding on her face.

"They're, well... They're the echoes of their souls that they behind when they died. They technically live in here and technically they don't. Yeah this place gets weirder still."

"Anyway they're my teachers, Sir Alarick Carpenter here, teaches me basically everything from combat to survival" Marco said as he gestured to the well built blonde man, who in turn gave them a wide smile and a small bow.

At the mention of the man's name Star and Kelly's eyes immediately went wide.

"This is Harrison Lighthymn, he's a jerk. And he teaches me a bit of magic and about the all the monsters and demons I fight, and he knows a **lot** about monsters and demons, he used to research them and capture the ones that posed a threat to innocent people, he says he was called The Warden. I just call him a jerk." Marco said, much to the annoyance of Harrison.

"And lastly this is Alura Faye, she's a dryad, she teaches me about nature, and potions." Marco said.

"So... Any questions?" Marco asked. And immediately everyone raised their hands, even the spirit echoes.

" _sigh..._ Okay one at a time." Marco said.

"Janna, you first." Marco said.

"Where'd you find them? And how'd you get them to bond with you?" Janna asked.

" _sigh..._ You know, I had a feeling you already knew about spirit echoes Jann, anyway Harrison and Alura I met while I was in Hpoo's dimension, Sir Alarick I met while... well he wouldn't me." Marco said shrugging.

"Eh? I don't get it." Jackie said.

"You see Jackie, for a spirit echo to guide you, your gonna have to do something to impress them, usually it's a challenge they left while they were still alive." Janna said.

"Correct. So as for how I "bonded" with them, well with Alura I saved a forest from being burned down, for Harry I think I met him in a cave full of crystals, I don't remember what I did there though, most of my memories during that time are still hazy." Marco said.

"Okay, me next, who are these people?" Harrison asked.

"They're my friends. They'll be training here with me." Marco said.

"I was wondering if you could give them some tips like you did for me" Marco asked the spirit.

"Sorry kid, no can do, we're bonded to you, not them. You could always just pass on what we teach you to them if you want." He said with a shrug.

"Okay, fair enough." Marco said.

"Okay my turn, since when were able to talk to them in... Here" Jackie asked, gesturing to nothing and everything at the same time.

"Ummm okay, so I've always been able to go to this place ever since I was a kid, but I always thought it was just a dream cause I couldn't do it on purpose then and it only ever happened once a month or so." Marco said

"Ever since Star came along it happened a lot more often, eventually I got the hang of it, though I have to be asleep or meditating in order to get here. As for these guys, " Marco said, pointing a thumb towards the spirit echoes.

"Well I've only been able to see them here after I finished the Trials on Hekapoo's dimension." Marco said.

"Is that really the great Sir Alarick? Hero of Mewni? And The single greatest swordsman in Mewni's history?" Star and Kelly asked at the same time.

"Well, I suppose this question is for me. And yes, yes I am, didn't really know that people still talked about me." Alarick said.

"Okay, so me next boy, do you know the consequences of bringing them in here?" Alarick asked, his face completely serious.

"What do you mean?" Marco asked.

"Well boy, you quite literally invited them inside your mind you know. They could find your secrets, your weaknesses they can access your memories here if they try hard enough." Alarick said.

Marco just closed his eyes and concentrated, thinking hard.

"... It's fine" he said.

"You sure?" Harrison said.

"Yeah, I trust them." Marco said simply.

And lastly Alura simply raised her hand, much like a student does when they have a question.

"Umm... Yes Alura?" Marco asked

"Did you finally get all the ingredients?" She asked softly.

"Ahh, no not yet, sorry." Marco said.

"Buuuu, I'm all bored now. Get it faster." She said, pouting.

"Sorry, I've just been busy is all." Marco said

"Fine. You know where to find me." She said as she disappeared.

"Well seems like we'll be seeing each other a lot here, just make sure you aren't doing anything... _Indecent_ while we're here, you can just ask us to leave and we'll leave you be till you call for us." Harry said.

At that all the teens blushed deep red, and Alarick simply whacked Harrison upside the head.

"Don't mind him, he's an ass." Alarick said, also disappearing.

"Hehe, anyway call me Harry, also Marco we really might not be here for a while, the strain on your mind is bad enough with us here, now you're training with four others, be careful okay? " He said, disappearing in a much more extravagant manner, with pink smoke and fireworks.

"Show off..." Marco said.

"So... Now what?" Kelly asked.

They all looked at each other, then they all looked to Marco.

Five minutes later, Star and Janna were throwing spells at each other, expertly destroying half of the dojo in the process.

Jackie was doing some meditation, Marco said he'd needed to find out what type of magic she had, in order to train with her.

Kelly and Marco were sparring, Kelly with her great sword and Marco with twin steel tonfas.

It wasn't the first time they sparred together, although the first time was just Kelly needing to let out some... Well a lot of pent-up anger, and like the adorable dork that Marco was, he volunteered to be her sparring partner.

Though this time, something was different, something about Marco seemed off he was more confident in his movements and most of Kelly's attacks were just brushed off, which was weird as Kelly was the one to deflect the blows and Marco was the one to dodge and weave, but right now it was a contest of pure strength.

And Marco was pushing Kelly. He was actually pushing her into the defensive purely by trading blows alone, not backflipping, not rolling, just pushing her back with power and technique.

This was understandable as Marco fought with the tonfas like they were simply an extention of himself, blocking and almost immediately counterattacking in the span of half a second, he spun them around mockingly every chance he got and even added couple of kicks into his combo.

And Kelly loved it.

This was honestly the first time she had so much fun being pushed back like this. She never fought like this before, they traded blows, blocked, and parried almost in perfect sync, they were practically dancing. And it was making Kelly's blood rush.

Eventually Kelly had unknowingly used her special skill, an innate ability very few warriors possessed, it enhances a person's fighting prowess for as long as they can keep it up, combined with Kelly's crazy strength it made her nigh unstoppable.

As the red lines begun to draw themselves across Kelly's skin her attacks became faster and stronger, eventually she pushed Marco enough that he had to resort to using his agile and nimble movements to dodge and weave between the blows.

Eventually Marco had his back to the wall it was gonna be Kelly's win, but just as Kelly moved in with an overhead swing Marco let go of both tonfas and caught them by the length of the weapon, he then hooked the handle of one of them to Kelly's wrists and other to the underside of the sword's guard, and in one quick motion separated Kelly from her sword and swung her around pinning her against the wall.

Their bodies were pressed together and they were both breathing heavily but the two of them had matching crazed smiles on their faces.

"That... _huff_... was fun." Kelly said, breathing rather heavily.

And Marco just grinned and nodded back, unable to reply cause he was out of breath.

"Could... could you let go of me now..." Kelly said, her face blushing.

"Huh? Oh... Ohgoimsosososorry" Marco stuttered as he let go.

"How uh, how about you rest up for now?" Marco said, changing the subject and trying to hide the blush on his face.

"Yeah, I could use a breather." Kelly responded, sitting on a nearby chair, catching her breath.

Marco then walked over to Jackie, careful to steer clear of Star and Janna's showdown.

"Hey Jackie." Marco said.

No reply.

"Jackie?" He tried again.

Nothing.

"Uhh... Jackie?" He tried once more.

Jackie was currently sitting with her legs crossed, a look of concentration on her face, so once again, no reply.

Marco decided to stop calling her name, and instead he sat across her, also crossing his legs and he took her hands into his, fighting the blush rushing to his face.

Jackie was currently in her subconscious, still sitting with her legs crossed yet somehow she was floating, surrounded by a cyclone of pure magic, a blue aura was radiating from her body, she didn't know what to do here, all she knows was that Marco was gonna call for her soon.

The cyclone spinning around her gave her little visibility about her surroundings, all she saw was the continously spinning _thing_ around her, and the blue aura she was emitting.

She decided to close her eyes and concentrate, and all of the sudden she felt warmth, it was faint, but it was still very much there. She instinctively reached out to the warmth with both her hands, grabbing onto it.

"Uhhh Jackie... I'm gonna need my face back please." Marco said, startling Jackie.

Fluttering her eyes open she saw that she did in fact, grab Marco's face, actually, she still was.

"Oh. Sorry dude, didn't... Didn't mean to do that." She said, reluctantly letting go of his face.

"Wait, how're you here?" Jackie asked, suddenly remembering where they were.

Marco just titled his head to the side.

"I was gonna ask you the same thing, usually it takes a while for a mage to be able to get... here." Marco said, gesturing to his surroundings.

"What do you mean? Aren't we in your mind?" Jackie asked, confused.

"Yes, and no. We're technically in my mindscape right now, but we're also in... _Here_ , there isn't a set name for this place, some call it their inner spirit, some say it's a glimpse of their soul, some say it's the core of one's body. Basically we're looking at your inner power, and I gotta say, I am impressed." Marco said, looking around him.

"Really? Jackie asked

"Yup" Marco replied simply.

"Anyway, I'm a little tired right now, how about we go back and rest for today, we can start practice tomorrow up until we go back, in two weeks. And before you ask, yes we're staying here for the time being Star already asked permission from your parents for you, but if you want you could just go back. "Marco said.

Jackie just stared at him blankly for a few seconds before she happily jumped... Er... floated, up and down and lunged forward to hug the boy.

" Yes! Yes yes yes! I've always wanted to visit Star's home, now I get to have a two week long sleep over! Now... how do I get out of here?" she asked, when she let go.

"Open your eyes" Marco said, a small smile on his face.

And she did, what she saw was Marco's brown eyes looking into her own, their hands were intertwined, though she didn't know why, not that she didn't like it though.

Marco immediately let go of her after he realized he was still holding her hands.

"Sorry..." He said, blushing.

But the embarrassed look on Marco's face was short lived as it was immediately replaced by one of shock and worry.

"What happened?" Marco asked.

Confused, Jackie turned around and understood what Marco meant, a huge portion of the dojo had been completely obliterated.

Janna was standing still, a look of shock upon her face, not five seconds ago Star had shot a devastating ray of green energy, destroying everything in its path, luckily for her Star managed to move her wand just in time to avoid melting Janna.

Kelly looked on in horror as a few books fell and burned around her, she was absolutely stunned at Star's display of power.

Star however was feeling absolutely horrible. At first she was just a little frustrated thinking back to this morning about how, she wasn't able to help Marco much and that he had to deal with the zombies alone, so much so that he actually collapsed from exhaustion plus the fact that she shot him out of a cannon made her feel worse, and after she saw how close Marco was to Kelly when they were fighting made her feel... Weird. And when she was him holding Jackie's hands she felt her magic go out of control and she nearly blasted Janna.

And right now, Marco was checking on Janna to see if she was okay... She felt like a massive burden to her best friend.

 _'I really am nothing but a problem for Marco...'_ Star thought to herself.

And just then Marco pulled Star into a warm embrace, when he pulled back he cupped his hands to her face.

"Star..." He said softly, it was the same voice he used whenever he woke her up, kind, gentle, sweet and somehow it always pulled her consciousness towards him.

"It's okay Star, no need to cry, everything's alright. No one got hurt, it's okay. It's okay." He said, wiping away her tears with his thumb.

She hadn't even realized she was crying, or that she was clinging onto Marco now, crying her eyes out and calling his name over and over and over again.

"I'm so sorry Marco, I'm a horrible best friend, I shot you out of cannon, I made you plan for the trip on your own, I was practically useless when we fought those zombies and now I broke your mind, what if you're not the same later, what... What if... I'm so sorry Marco." Star said, as she cried into her bestie's chest.

 _" sigh..._ Star Butterfly, you are a lot of things, but a problem is **not** one of them." Marco said, as both he and Star slid to the floor, not breaking their hug.

It took a few more minutes for Star to calm down, only then did Marco let her go, albeit reluctantly.

"Are you okay now?" he asked.

Star simply nodded very slowly, only to quickly shake her head, withdrawing her previous answer.

" _sigh..._ Star, look at me." Marco said, and Star slowly looked up to her bestie, expecting him to be mad, only to find him smiling at her, making her blush.

"Star, you don't have to worry about anything, the mindscape will repair itself it won't affect me in anyway, as for the other things, well everything turned out fine, right? That's what matters." Marco said

"Look, why don't we all continue this tomorrow okay? You guys might be a little tired when you wake up, especially since Glossaryck probably knocked us out." Marco said.

Everyone agreed with Marco.

"Okay then, well if you want to get out of here, just focus and open your eyes, he said just as he closed his own eyes.

When he opened his eyes, he saw that he was in a similar room to where he woke up earlier, only to find his friends sleeping in nearby identical beds.

He smiled at the sight, and then he realized that he had a slight headache, when he took a sniff of air he realized he could smell blood, he also had the unmistakably metallic taste of blood in his mouth.

He was confused, but he relaxed when he saw that Star and the others were simply resting comfortably.

~~~~~

Marco was currently making his way through the castle, looking for the Queen to update her on what's happened, it seemed like the right thing to do, besides his friends were still asleep so he didn't have anything else to do.

He finally got to the throne room, and to his surprise he didn't see any guards stationed at the door.

'Odd, there're usually two guards here' he thought to himself.

As he entered the room he was shocked to see it in a state of ruin, there were scorch marks everywhere, the walls and tapestries were riddled with slashes and burn marks, there were multiple holes in the walls, some windows were broken and a pillar or two was knocked down also one of the thrones was sliced neatly in half while the other was completely untouched.

And just then River walked into the room.

"Marco my boy! Whatever are you doing up? Were you not training in your mind?" He asked.

"Oh yeah, about that we were gonna continue tomorrow, we're all a little tired so I postponed it till then." Marco replied.

To this River just squinted his eyes and took a closer look at Marco.

"Hmmm" he said.

"Ugh... Anyway your majesty, what happened here?" Marco asked, looking around the room again.

"Oh this? T'was just a little tussle, you need not worry about it." He said, waving the question off.

"Anyway my boy, how about a little chat eh?" River asked, as he hooked his hand around the boy and lead him off to the balcony, not waiting for a response.

"Umm okay, what did you want to talk about?" Marco asked.

"That depends, what do you want to talk about?" River replied.

"Umm, sorry I don't understand." Marco said.

"Exactly, my boy. Your mind is scattered! You're confused, and I can see it in your eyes, even if you yourself cannot." River said.

"So tell me, what's on your mind?" he said.

"Well, I'm thinking about how to go about this whole training thing..." Marco said

"And?" River said.

"And uhhh that we need to get stronger?"

Marco added.

"We?" River asked, his tone was questioning, but respectful.

"Yes we need to... No. I need get stronger." Marco said.

"Oh? And why's that?" River asked.

"So I can help Star." He replied simply.

"Is that it?" River said.

"... No." Marco said.

"When... When I was in Hekapoo's dimension, I was strong. I was wasn't weak there, I saved plenty of people there, I had so many adventures... And so many enemies, but at least I was strong enough to deal with them. Right here, right now... I'm weak. I'm only human, I need to get stronger." Marco continued.

"And what will you do if get stronger, hmmm?" River asked.

"I'm gonna help Star." Marco said again.

"Help her with what? I'm quite certain my daughter is no weakling, so what will you help her with?" River said.

Marco was silent, unable to answer the King's question.

"Marco, when you were in Hekapoo's dimension you were on a quest, a nearly impossible one at that, that was why you needed to be stronger, you had a great reason. But right now, let me ask you what is your most important purpose for being right now? What is your raison d'être, if you will." River said.

"Well..." Marco began.

"Wrong!" River said, rather forcefully.

"The momen you have taken more than five seconds to think of an answer to that, you were already mistaken!" River said.

"Tell me, without thinking, just say the first thing that comes to mind, what is it that you want to do?" he asked, almost pleadingly

"I want to just hang out with Star and our friends, I wanna go on adventures, have fun! But..." Marco said.

"But what boy? That is an excellent reason! Go, have fun, enjoy life, explore!" River proclaimed.

"Before you can think of becoming a King you must first be a man, and before you can be a man you must be a boy, a boy who will make mistakes and learn from them, one who'll grow stronger with experience, one who enjoys life!" River said.

"Wow..." Marco said.

"Ummm... When I came back from Hpoo's home I didn't know if I was going to be able to adapt... I had wanted to act my own age, but I didn't even know what my age was anymore! But now... Thank you River, I didn't know I needed that." Marco said.

"Call me d... *cough* I mean yes yes, it's all good my boy." River said, smiling at the boy.

'It may be a little to early for that...' River thought, laughing inwardly.

"Speaking of living life, I heard Star was planning a party later, to send off our friends right?" Marco said

"Hmmm, oh yes although it's more of a simple banquet to end the day, she requested that as her reward." River said.

"Why, do you have something on mind?" River asked the boy, who seemed to be deep in thought.

"Actually yes, but not really for the party, it's for something else..." Marco then proceeded to tell the King of his plan.

"What a splendid idea! I'll help as much as I can." River said.

"Thank you, I'm gonna go prepare now, the sun's already starting to set." Marco said, as he quickly hopped into a portal.

And just as Marco left, Queen Moon stepped out into the balcony.

"Oh, River dear, what are you doing out here?" Moon asked.

"Oh, nothing, just grooming the future King is all." He said, smiling to himself.

And Moon simply rolled her eyes, she was used to her husband doing and saying the weirdest things.

And just then, River frowned.

"But I am concerned; Will she be alright? I have never seen her that angry before, frankly speaking it terrified me" River said.

" sigh... Honestly I don't know. I too have never seen such rage from her, sure she was eccentric but she was never like this" Moon said, looking into the ruined throne room, more specifically the scorch mark on the far side of the wall with the imprint of Glossaryck in the middle.

"Hmpf, well if you ask me Glossaryck deserved it! Marco was coughing up blood, but he was simply handling the poor boy like a sack of corn meal for crying out loud!" River said, fuming.

"We'll worry about it later, she seems to have calmed down when she realized the boy wasn't in any immediate danger, plus inviting her to the party seemed to make her happy." Moon said.

"Yeah... Wait, you said party, but I thought it was a simple feast?" River asked.

To which Moon rolled her eyes.

"Dear, this is Star we're talking about of course she'll be having a party." Moon said simply.

"Hmmm... Okay, but I say it once, I say it again, I do not like Glossaryck, and although Hekapoo gave him what was coming to him, did she have to break my throne? I really liked that one." River said, crossing his arms.

The Queen simply chuckled at her husband's antics.

Star had woken woken up to the sound of puppies yipping, and that of lasers being blasted left and right.

"Yaaawn... Morning puppies! "Star happily greeted them, as she sat up and stretched.

"Wait... Puppies?" Star said, finally rubbing the sleep our of her eyes.

And sure enough the laser puppies were running around the room, shooting off lasers and playing with the three other puppies, Day, Bleu, and Night.

"What are you guys doing on Mewni?" Star asked the puppies.

And when they heard her they all stopped playing around and jumped up her bed, greeting her with puppy kisses.

"Hehehe, so cute." Star said as she scooped all of them up and hugged them.

One of the laser puppies had a note tied to his collar, which Star took.

'Star, I decided to take the puppies with us, that way our parents could at least relax a little at home, also I took Night and Bleu too since Janna and Jackie would probably be a little sad if they saw us with our puppies and theirs were at home. By the way, you and the girls might be a little dizzy so take it easy, (hey that rhymed!) you might also not remember much, that's normal, and if so I'll explain everything later. Also I'm doing something at the moment, so I might be a little late to the party.' -Marco.

"Our parents..." Star said quietly, a small blush on her face.

"Wait... THE PARTTTY!" Star screamed, causing the puppies to fly off the bed, literally in Night's case, as she had wings.

Her shout also woke up the other girls in the room.

Jackie stretched as she sat up, with Bleu nimbly hopping onto her bed and cuddling close to Jackie's face.

"Aww... Good morning to you too Bleu." She said as she hugged her little puppy.

Janna, on the bed next to her was combing her hand through her messy hair, before putting on her beanie, just as Night flew into her arms, nuzzling her face against Janna's own.

"Hey that's my face!" She said as she tore Night away from her face and hugged her.

And lastly, Kelly who was on the bed next to Janna's was wiping the slight drool on her face as she lazily fixed the crooked glasses on her face, just as she was stretching Day popped out of hair, right on the top of her head.

"Hey, what are you doing in there little guy?" Kelly said as she took the puppy out of her hair, who then started to happily give Kelly little puppy kisses.

"Awwww, sho ccuute" She said. "But who's puppies are these?"

And as if on cue, Janna and Jackie both stopped what they were doing and simultaneously said.

"Wait, how'd you get here?" They asked their respective pups.

"Oh, Marco got brought them along." Star said as she hopped out of her bed.

"He wanted to bring the laser pups here so Mr. And Mrs. Diaz wouldn't have to worry about them, he also brought Night and Bleu, he says you might miss them if he didn't." She supplied.

"Wait... Laser pups? So this guy shoots lasers?" Kelly asked, as she was picking up Day.

"Oh, Day doesn't shoot lasers, just these guys" Star said, gesturing to the mini cyclone of puppies running around her feet.

"Oh cool!" Kelly said as a few of the laser pups began shooting lasers everywhere.

"Well anyway, we gotta get ready! I had a party planned before our friends go back home!" Star said, running to the door, telling her friends to hurry up.

After a couple of hours planning and getting ready, the party was all set to go, and since all of Star's friends were resting in castle after a hectic beach day they were all more than eager to dance the night away.

However, before they could, they were invited to dine with the King and Queen, even the Migic High Commission was there, so all of their classmates were a little apprehensive, since at the front of the long table, sat a blue guy with a crystal for a head, an angel demon goat thing, what appeared to be a floating skull inside a crystal ball, and a demoness wearing a yellow ballgown with an erratic flame dancing above her horned head and the fact that she was glaring daggers everywhere made everyone nervous.

However Star and co., who were sitting right across the Magic High Commission, were simply chatting with each other.

"Wait... So there's food here that tells you how you're gonna die?" Janna asked.

"Yeah, but it's more of a guess than actually looking into the future though" Star replied.

"Okay, so you're not a mermaid?" Kelly asked.

"As cool as that would be, no I'm not." Jackie answered.

"Wait okay, so how did you and Marco get so close?" Janna asked, her eyes narrowing.

"Oh uh..."Kelly began.

"How much do you know about him? His fav color? Snack? Movie? Karate move?" Janna continued.

"Woah, easy there Jann" Jackie said, afraid that Marco's friend might take offense.

"Met him in line when I was buying goblin dogs, I was a little shy then so I didn't say much to him but he talked to me still, I thought it was cute, my boyfriend thought it was a little annoying." Kelly said.

"Wait, you have a boyfriend?" Star asked, somehow feeling a little relieved.

"Ummm had, we broke up, thanks to Marco." She said.

And just like that the room was suddenly enveloped in deafening silence as every one of Star's friends and Star herself snapped their heads to the side to look at Kelly, even Hekapoo was staring at her.

"Oh, sorry I didn't say that right. We broke up but he was being stubborn, so Marco helped me by talking to my bow ex boyfriend ."Kelly said.

And a chorus of "Ahhhh" was heard from their friends, while Star, Janna and Jackie all let out a breath of relief.

"Oh and it's Red, plum, and Prussian Blue, Nachos, Mackie Hand the First Fist the original Swedish version, and his fav move is the block and claw!" Kelly said, imitating the move.

"What? How'd you know?" Janna asked.

"Hmm... Marco told me." Kelly said.

And before they could say anything else River and Moon entered the room, everyone stood up, and when they reached the very front of the table and sat down, they gestured for everyone else to sit.

"We are honored to have you all here as guests, as friends of the princess you are all welcome in our kingdom, and as I know you are all eager to begin let us not tarry and let us begin this feast." Moon said, as she held up a glass.

"Ah, but one moment now, is Marco not here yet?" River asked.

And just then a portal opened up right behind Star, startling some of the guards who then pointed their spears at the portal.

"Sorry I'm late, I... Eep" Marco was saying, but the spear aimed at his throat shut him up.

"Come now Tericius, that's Marco! Stand your men down." River said.

"Oh, I did not know it was Marco the Red, my apologies to you my King, and to you as well Sir Marco." Tericius said, bowing to them both.

"It's okay man, Queen Moon, River." Marco said, bowing as he greeted the royals.

"Pssssst Marcoooo, sit next to me" Star said in a whisper everyone could hear.

And he did, he was next to Star and Jackie, with Star on his right and Jackie on his left, and directly in front of him was Hekapoo.

And it turns out that Marco came just in time for the food to be served, it was a multitude of Mewman cuisine, so basically every dish had corn in it one way or another.

Corn bread, corn soup, steamed corn, grilled corn, meat coated in corn butter, corned beef (which actually had corn in it), and whole lot more corn foodstuffs was being served.

"Wow, corn. Who would've guessed." Hekapoo said, in a bored voice.

"You okay Hpoo? You seem... Agitated." Marco said.

"Agitated? She's always like that, no different than usual!" The man, who Marco now knows is called Rhombulus said.

"Oh, by the way, sorry about earlier" He added, just as Hekapoo whacked him upside the head.

"It's okay, man, sorry about punching you with your own crystal..." Marco replied.

"Don't worry about it, he deserved it" Righty, the right hand snake said.

"Yeah man, nice punch by the way." Lefty, the left hand snake said.

All the while Hekapoo was beating Rhombulus over and over with a spoon.

"So..." Marco said in a questioning tone.

"I'm not upset muscles, so drop it." Hekapoo said, pointing the spoon at Marco.

Marco simply looked at her erratically moving flame, then looked back at her with a raised eyebrow, crossing his arms.

"Not a word muscles. And can't they serve the food faster? I wanna go home and..." Hekapoo was saying, but the moment one of the servants placed a covered dish in front of her she became quiet.

"And what Hpoo?" Marco asked quietly, he was resting his chin on his hand as he looked at her, a small smile on his face.

No, reaction came from the Forger of Scissors, instead she slowly reached over and removed the silver dome covering the dish.

It was at this exact moment that several of Star's classmates, and three mewman guards instantly fell in love with the face that Hekapoo made as she looked at the dish.

Her eyes slowly widened and shone with a soft light, her mouth formed into a small "o" shape, resembling that of a kindergartener's face seeing something for the first time.

She took a new spoon and then very slowly, took a bite of the dish, when she opened her mouth steam visibly came out of her mouth and a look of absolute bliss and happiness was on her face.

Several boys and a few girls had to turn away in order to hide the blush on their faces.

The dish itself was impressive in its own right, at first glance it was bright red and arranged to look like a flower, and comprised of what looked like meat, rice, a lot of alien looking veggies, mewnian corn, and almonds.

The dish was evidently delicious, as proven by the smile that never left Hekapoo's face.

"Guess you still like my _paella_ huh?" Marco asked, a smile on his face.

Hekapoo simply nodded, the flame on top of her head was no longer erratic, instead it seemed to pulse lightly every few seconds and it was slowly swaying from side to side.

"I love it." She said, as she swallowed.

After a few minutes similar dishes were served to the others, a few people really liked it too.

Some had begun to finish eating so they took to talking amongst themselves, some of the veteran soldiers had even joined in, talking about their great deeds.

One of them bragged about being a former griffon rider.

Another bragged about singlehandedly subjugating a group of trents who were harassing a village.

One even bragged about how he got the title "Resolute", apparently his whole squad was bewitched by a beautiful dryad who made them fight amongst themselves, but he managed to fight her control and save his squadron.

Their classmates who were listening in Ohhh-ed and Ahhh-ed at the stories.

Some bards were even invited apparently, and they began singing tales of great warriors and their deeds.

"But wait... How come that one guard called you 'Marco The Red?'" Jackie asked.

"Oh ugh... That." Marco began...

"Sigh... That was cause me and River went out hunting once, I was standing in the wrong spot at the wrong time and well, blood from a bear tends to flow really fast once it's head gets cut off, I went back to the castle drenched in it." Marco said miserably.

Kelly and Jackie chuckled at the story, while Star and Janna burst out laughing.

"Well it can't get any worse than that, Marco" Star said, wiping a tear away.

"Actually... It can." Hekapoo said, casually swirling her drink in one hand.

At this Marco froze.

"No. No. No. No no." He said, looking at Hekapoo and shaking his head.

"The more you say no, the more I wanna do it." she said, grinning at the distressed boy.

"Ghhh ... Fine, but just one." Marco said, covering his face with his hoodie.

"Okay, listen up, this is the story of how muscles here earn the great and noble title of "Wolf pup" Hekapoo said.

At this Star started to giggle.

"Ughhh" Marco groaned, knowing all too well how this little story goes.

"You see, this was when he was around 17 years old in my dimension, he been around for 3 years by then he earned a bit of a rep by helping those that needed helping, like the dork he is, anyway so a town was afraid for their children as they saw a Demonic Wolf (it's like a regular wolf, but bigger, waaay bigger, like size of a house bigger) take shelter in a cave near the town, and at night the could hear its howling so no one could sleep, afraid for their lives." Hekapoo said.

"So Marco volunteered to go and deal with it. And appaaaarently, the wolf there was just pregnant with its little wolf babies, so he planned to go back to the village and tell them that they just need to make sure that the pups are safe and the mommy wolf wouldn't go on a murderous rampage, but before he could leave the cave the momma came back from a hunt, and it *giggle* it somehow thought that Marco was one of its babies so it took Marco by the hood and carried him back inside, to 'raise him'; he was there for a whole month! "

"And the whole time he was treated like a wolf pup, he was given 'baths', he played with the other pups, whenever he played too rough with his brothers his mom would pick him up by the hood and carry him away."

"The whole town thought he was dead, by the time someone had the guts to go there they saw Marco sleeping with the wolf and wolf pups. Eventually Marco convinced the Wolf to leave, but the town thought he was pretending to be a pup so the wolf wouldn't attack them, they paraded him round the town shouting 'Praise the wolf pup and his bravery.' " Hekapoo finished her story with a laugh.

Marco's face was just as red as his hoodie, the fact that Star and Jackie were petting him like a puppy didn't help.

"Wait... I guess that kinda explains why he's so friendly with wolves." Kelly said, tapping her chin in thought.

"Oh... Do tell" Hekapoo said, leaning across the table.

"Oh, we went on a quest to look for a specific herb one day, and decided to split up, by the time I found the herb and met up with Marco, he was covered in mud, sticks, leaves and small cuts, apparently he saw a pack of wolves and he said they led him to a patch of where the herb grew, but in exchange he had to hunt with them. Apparently he got carried away with the hunting."

"The next time we went to that forest the wolves came to see him again, and this time they wanted to help us with our quest, since apparently Marco helped them catch a massive boar, so they were returning the favor. And I gotta say, riding wolves as mounts was super fun." Kelly said.

"Wait, you said wolf pup was one of the titles Marco had, were there others?" Janna asked.

"Oh, there were plenty. _Of the Black Harvest, Warrior of light, Hunt's End, Warrior Sage, Flameweaver, Knight of Winter, Protector of the Wall, Scholar of the Runes, Aspect of the Sun, Of the Blessed Isles, The Crimson Tide, Guardian of Flowers, The Watcher's Own.'_ " Hekapoo said, counting them off her fingers.

"And that's just half of them I think, he even has a few songs written about him." She said.

"Really?" Star asked.

"Yup, want me to sing one to you?" Hekapoo asked, the question directed mostly to Marco.

"Sure... It can't get any worse than what you already told them right?" Marco said.

"Yo bard, come here!" Hekapoo said, waving a bard over.

Hekapoo then whispered something in his ear, to which the bard nodded and began playing a slow, soulful tune.

"Okay, I'll only do this once so listen well." she said.

' _Our hero, our hero, he lost all that he loved._

 _I tell you a tale, of a hero's resolve._

 _With his power of wit and the might of his sword._

 _Believe, believe, he comes for your head._

 _He's the end of your evil and y'r blackened old soul_

 _Beware, beware, his vengeance is due_

 _Darkness consumed, the light of his soul_

 _You'll know you'll know, when he comes for your head.'_

Followed by what Marco could only describe as beautiful wordless lyrics flowing from her voice.

 _'Bound by fate, bound by forces unknown._

 _For the sake of his heart he hunts you all down._

 _From the lowest, to you, he seeks out your blood._

 _For the sake of his friends, and their mem'ries too._

 _He'll cut down your horde, and hunt for you last._

 _"Now one last toast, to all of you guys."_

 _The hero proclaimed as he offered them ale._

 _To the ground it went, to their bodies below, to the sky above where their souls lay a rest._

 _His last goodbye, 'fore the last fight._

 _"At last" he said, "at last I have won."_

 _His blade was broken, his body was torn,_

 _But his soul shone through and cleared out the dark._

 _Here lies the ballad, The end of the horde_

 _The story I've told, of Marco's Revenge.'_

The whole group was looking at her in stunned silence, none of them expected her to have such a beautiful singing voice it seems.

"The was beautiful, Hekapoo" Marco said, a melancholic smile on his face, and Star could have sworn a tear was falling down his cute little face.

"Of course..." Hekapoo said simply.

 _'This was my favorite, and this was where I almost lost you. You idiot.'_ she thought to herself.

Just like that, the mood seemed to have shifted. Not wanting to ruin the party, Star raised her wand up high.

"Come on, its party time!" She shouted, just as a wave of light emanated from her wand, immediately converting the whole room into a massive dance floor, complete with streamers, lights and a live dj.

"sighh... I'll be in my room." Moon said, as she stood up and walked out.

"Wait for me dear" River said following his wife.

Everyone wasted no time getting their party on, Hekapoo even changed to back to her causal clothes and danced with them.

When everyone was dead tired from dancing and the night had taken full hold of Mewni, it was time for everyone to go home.

Marco took it upon himself to escort everyone to their homes safely.

By the time he got back Star, Janna and Jackie were already in their rooms getting ready to sleep.

 _*Knock Knock*_

The sound of someone knocking on her door startled Star out of her bed.

She got up and opened the door, much to her surprise, it was Marco holding a bowl of his super awesome nachos.

"Hey Star, I was wondering if you wanted to hang out?" Marco asked.

"Wha? Sure! I always wanna hang out with my bestie!" She said.

Marco was in his pajamas, something Star didn't see often, which made the princess feel a little weird.

Marco used his scissors to bring his laptop, and they enjoyed the cheesy romantic comedies and the cheesy nachos as well.

The balcony was open to let in the cool night air.

The night sky was a sea of dazzling stars, so when they finished the second movie Stars eyes were immediately focused on the beauty of the sky.

"I wanna go outside" She unknowingly said.

"Star, it's cold outside" Marco replied.

"Yeah bu..." Star was about to say, till she remembered something.

"I really can't stay" She said instead.

"Like I said Star, it's cold outside" he replied.

"I gotta go awaaaay" She said, looking at Marco expectantly.

"For the las..." Marco stopped himself as he realized what Star was doing.

"Baby it's cold outside" Marco replied, a little embarrassed, but willing to play Star's game.

"This evening has been... " Star said, in a sing-song manner, happy that Marco went along.

"Been hoping that you'd dropped in" Marco replied in a similar way.

"... Soooo very nice" Star said.

"I'll hold your hands they're just like ice" Marco sang back to Star, as he took her hands.

"My mother will start to worry, my father will be pacing the floor" Star sang back.

"Beautiful what's your hurry? Listen to that fireplace roar" Marco sang, gesturing to the imaginary fireplace.

"So really I'd better scurry" Star said, pointing out the balcony.

"Beautiful please don't hurry" Marco sang back to Star, pulling her closer, away from the balcony

"Well maybe just a half a drink more" Star sang, placing her finger on her chin in a mock thinking manner.

"I'll put some records on while I pour" Marco sang in response.The neighbors might think

"Baby it's bad out there"

"Say what's in this drink?"

"No cabs to be had out there"

"I wish I knew how" They sang to each other.

"Your eyes are like starlight now" Marco tilted her chin up and looked into her eyes as he sang this.

"To break this spell" Star sang as she moved away from Marco, and turning her back to him.

"I'll take your hat, your hair looks swell" Marco sang as he walked over to her, pretending to take a hat off her head.

"Why thank you"Star replied.

"I ought to say no, no, no sir" Star sang, wagging her finger in front of Marco.

"Mind if move in closer?" Marco moved in closer as he sang.

At least I'm gonna say that I tried" Star sang as she crossed her arms

"What's the sense of hurtin' my pride?" Marco sang as he placed his hand on his chest, pretending to look hurt.

"I really can't stay"

"Baby don't hold out"

Baby it's cold outside!" They sang together.

"Ah, you're very pushy you know?" Star said, poking Marco in the chest.

"I like to think of it as opportunistic" Marco said with a shrug.

At that they both burst out laughing.

"You really like that song don't you?" Marco asked, as he and Star fell into the sea of pillows Star conjured up earlier.

"Yup! I really do!" She said.

"You know... Mewni has lots of beautiful stars." Marco said, looking out at the sky, and yawning a little.

"Yeah! But so does Earth... The brightest star here is called the 'Tear of Light', do you know what's the brightest one on Earth?" Star asked, not really looking at her best friend as her eyes were glue to the beauty of the moon and stars.

"That's *yawn* easy... It's *yaaaawn* you... Star" Marco said, drifting off to sleep.

Star snapped her head to the side, a massive blush on her face, only to see a peacefully sleeping Marco, softly snoring away.

"Yup, you really look cute when you sleep" Star said as she fell asleep hugging her best friend, under the soft red light of the blood moon.

~~~~~~~~~~

 **Muahahahaha you thought I was done making them sing? You thought wrong! Also yeah, they'll be spending two weeks in Mewni, training, having fun, and generally messing around. Next chapter is gonna be a peace talks one. And thanks so much for the review guys, I really appreciate it. I'll try to polish my writing as this story goes on. Amd since it's gonna be THAT type of route, I'll try to build their relationships up first, otherwise it's an insult to the characters. Also, although I've written here that they'll be training in Marco's little mind dimension most of their real training will be done in the real world, for reasons.**


	12. Peace Talks: Temporary Truce

**I had some free time today so I decided to write this now, definitely didn't do so cause I was just really happy that you guys liked the previous chapter so much. Nope, definitely not that.** **Okay maybe it was that.**

 **Peace Talks 2**

 **Temporary Truce**

It had been a couple of hours since Star had blasted Tom back to the Underworld, and the demon prince was **not** having a good time.

Even with the demonic regeneration his bloodline had given him, he was not recovering at all; he was completely drained of both physical and magical energy.

"Ughhh, when the heck did Starship learn to do that?" He groaned.

"Master Tom, his highness King..." A gargoyle demon was saying, before getting a fireball to the face.

 **"Get out! I don't care what father says. I'm am not gonna stop trying to get Star back!"** Tom roared at the attendant.

"A... As you wish Prince Thomas." The gargoyle said as he hurried out of the prince's room.

As his door magically slammed shut behind the gargoyle, Tom looked at his still flaming hand with a frown on his face.

" _I gotta work on myself first..._ That's what he said. **Ha!,** as if that lowly human knows anything." Tom said to himself, remembering what Marco had told him.

"I just need to get past him and..." The moment those words left his mouth he instantly remembered the look of seething hatred he received from the beanie wearing girl Marco was with.

"Gotta make sure I never see her again." Tom said with a shudder.

He got up from bed and made his way to the desk where his laptop and a big black book was, stretching as he did so.

"Erk... Everything hurts." He said with a groan.

He moved his laptop aside and opened the book in front of him, skimming through the pages, stopping at one in particular.

"Naysaya? Hmmm, says here it forces the victim to reveal their deepest darkest secrets when they try to 'woo their love' that's a nice curse... Too bad I can't stack multiple curses. Damn." he said as he shoved the booked away and reaching for his laptop.

He spent a couple of hours just scrolling across random websites and looking for _'ways to mutilate and torture a human.'_ he was just about to close it out of boredom but a pop-up appeared and the demon instantly felt better.

~~~~~~~~

"I can't believe it! They're showing the original first film here AND they're showing the Legacy Special Director's cut after!" Tom proclaimed, happily clutching the ticket in his hand.

It had been a few days after the incident now, and right now Tom was on his way to Echo Creek's movie theater.

The people there didn't even bother giving the demon a second glance, something Tom found both confusing and relaxing at the same time.

 _'Better than having them run away or trying douse me in holy water.'_ he thought to himself.

 _'But why in the name of my home are they okay with a demon walking in broad daylight'_

Although Tom wasn't completely recovered from the magic attack a few days ago, which is confusing the demon as he usually heals pretty fast, he wasn't going to miss this opportunity.

He finally arrived at the theater and almost immediately his smile dropped.

Right in front of him was the familiar red hoodie of the one guy he wanted to decapitate the most. Marco Diaz.

Tom looked around, he was sure that Star was gonna be somewhere near this pathetic excuse for a sentient pile of flesh, but much to his surprise (and slight disappointment) Star wasn't here.

Which means he could do this dweeb in right now and get Star to go out with him.. Somehow...

"I'll burn that bridge when I get there." He whispered to himself.

Then he walked right behind the boy, grabbed his hood and he threw Marco behind him.

He had a wide grin on his face when he saw the boy on the floor, the fact the there darkening wet stain on his left shoulder made that grin even wider.

"Not so tough without the princess are ya?" Tom said as he made his way over.

"Dammit Tom. I don't have time for this!" Marco said as he got up.

"Tell that to my fist, you insect!" Tom growled as he charged up a flaming punch.

Not backing down, Marco donned a fighting stance, ready to fight.

"Hold it!" Some guy said, stepping in between the two boys.

"I don't care what's going on between you two, but if you make a mess in my theater you're not gonna be seeing anything today." He said.

"What?!" both boys said simultaneously.

"I need to see this movie! I'll stop fighting." Marco said desperately.

"Ha. That desperate to see some stupid romcom garbage?" Tom said.

"I don't expect you to understand Tom. This is the only time I'm gonna be able to see the Legacy Special Director's cut of Mackie Hand's first movie." Marco said.

Tom was taken aback by this.

"Wait. You're here for Mackie Hand?" Tom asked.

"Yeah... Why?" Marco asked

And at this Tom simply showed him his ticket.

Marco looked at the ticket and then back to Tom.

"Truce?" He asked.

"Truce. But just for now." Tom replied.

Five intense martial arts and kung-fu filled hours later.

"Ohhhh I can not believe it! That director's cut was amazing!" Marco said, imitating the moves from the movie, with more finesse than one would've expected.

"Yeah! The way he hooked his foot behind that guy's head and slammed it into a tree was awesome!" Tom said.

"Not as awesome as when he countered that punch and threw the guy into a fridge!" Marco said.

"Yeah and then he took those two guys and then he..." Tom was saying, but he was interrupted by a portal opening in front of them

"What's this? The future King of the Underworld hanging out with a lowly human?" A demon said as he stepped out of the portal.

This demon was wearing an inky black royal looking attire, had two eyes, no horns, dark green skin, thinly braided purple hair that reached his lower back and a black forked tail that was swaying from side to side behind him.

"Ugh... What do you want?" Tom asked.

"Simple enough, I want you dead." He replied.

"Ugh.. Tom who is this?" Marco asked.

"No one who matters, he'll be dead soon." Tom replied.

 _"tsk tsk..._ Never underestimate your opponent Thomas, as a royal you must know at least that much." The demon replied.

"You are literally impossible to underestimate dude." Tom said, looking bored.

 _ghh..._ Very well then, let's see if you really are fit for the throne." He said, snapping his fingers, a sword materializing on hand.

And as if on cue a six foot tall cyclops wielding a huge black club came out of the portal.

"Shit." Tom said under his breath.

 _'I haven't fully recovered yet. Damn.'_ he thought to himself.

"Language Tom!" Marco said, getting into a different stance than Tom saw him use.

His body wasn't held low this time, this time his back was straight, left foot slightly in front of the other, his left hand was held in front of him open palm facing forward and his right arm was behind his back, his right fist closed.

"I'll take the big guy." Marco said.

"What?" Tom asked, dumbfounded.

"We still have our truce, I'll help you this time." Marco said.

"Now shut up and fight." He added.

And with that the cyclops dashed forward, clumsily bringing the club down onto Marco's head.

Marco quickly dodged to the right, and with a spin he kicked him in the side, then he jumped back and resumed his stance.

This continued from a few more rounds, a huge swing from the cyclops, Marco dodging and weaving in between swings and landing hit after hit.

The cyclops was getting irritated now, with a loud roar he charged at Marco and did a sideways swipe with his club, only to have Marco simply step back making the cyclops miss completely, and then he quickly stepped forward, with his right hand he landed an open palm strike angled slightly upward right at the cyclop's solar plexus, causing him to lean forward, and then jumping up and using his left fist he landed an uppercut right under the guy's chin.

And with that the cyclops fell, unconscious.

"How're you doing Tom?" Marco asked with a tired sigh, as he turned around, only to find that Tom was holding onto a severed arm.

"I'm done here." He said as he tossed the arm into the portal, he also magically picked up the cyclops and tossed him into the portal too.

"Well that was annoying." Tom said as he sat by the sidewalk.

"Wasn't that a little much Tom?" Marco asked, sitting beside the demon.

Tom simply looked at him, raising his eyebrow.

"You literally did the same thing to me man. Besides, he'll be fine." Tom said with a tired sigh.

"Oh yeah, sorry dude." Marco said, laughing a little.

" **Sorry?!** What is wrong with you? I have tried to kill you myself, more than once for that matter. And you say sorry?" Tom asked.

"Yup." Marco simply said.

"You're not right in the head dude." Tom said.

"Heh, we're a lot similar than you think man." Marco said.

"Yeah right." Tom said, rolling his eyes.

"You can see my soul, you can prove it yourself." Marco simply said.

" _Riiight_ like a human can compare himself to a literal prince of hell." Tom said.

At that statement Marco's eyes briefly flashed red, startling the demon.

"Whatever man." Marco said as he got up.

"Anyway, there's this place down the road where they sell awesome burritos, wanna come with?" Marco asked Tom.

"Seriously?" Tom asked, not believing what he was hearing.

"Yeah, we still got a truce right? Besides I might find out what your weaknesses are, like maybe your weak to hot sauce or something." Marco said with a shrug.

"Heh, sure, why not." Tom said, clapping Marco on the shoulder, only to have Marco slap his hand away.

"Ah, sorry man, I'm kinda bleeding there again." Marco said as he took off his hoodie, revealing the blood soaked bandage covering the shallow but wide cut on his upper arm.

"Woah, sorry 'bout that." Tom said.

"Nah, s'okay, I can just bandage it again." Marco said, taking some out of his fanny pack.

Tom opened his mouth to comment on that, but a glare from Marco shut him up.

"You know, I can heal this for you." Tom said, poking the bleeding wound with his finger.

"Gah! Dude!" Marco said, throwing the blood soaked bandages towards Tom, who managed to catch it.

"Ugh, Ew! Keep your blood to yourself." Tom said, dropping the bandages.

"You're the one who poked the cut man!" Marco yelled.

"Fine whatever!" Tom replied.

Marco finishes bandaging up the cut, and after he picked up the old bandages and threw them away into a garbage can, they made their way to Britta's Tacos.

Tom was lagging behind Marco a little bit, looking at his hand, it felt weird it was all tingly it felt like the exact opposite of how he felt when Star's attack hit him a few days ago, instead of feeling drained his hand right now felt like it was too full of magic. All from touching a bit of this human's blood.

Tom was intrigued.

Their little visit to Britta's Tacos was uneventful, other than finding out that Marco was a fan of Love Sentence too.

The other thing that happened was, just before Marco hopped into a portal stating something about 'angry candy golems' Tom took a peek into his soul and it was interesting to say the least.

"Hmmm if I didn't have to kill him he'd be a great friend." Tom said, jumping out of the portal and into his bed.

"But just what are you hiding Diaz?" Tom asked, looking at his fist, it still felt tingly.

 **Yeah, a small little peace talks chapter about Tom. Anyway, I'm not sure if you guys noticed this but this is the first time anyone has noticed Marco's eyes going red, what could that mean I wonder? Also I'm gonna be polishing up the earlier chapters of this story before I continue with the next chapter. And really, I love love love love it that you guys are enjoying this!**

 **By the way the song Star and Marco sang was "Baby it's cold outside by Idina Menzel and Michael Buble. The one Hekapoo sang was by me. (hopefully it wasn't too bad)**

 **Also I'm thinking of rewriting the summary for this, although it still holds true for the story, it won't be showing until later. Waaay later. Do you guys think I should do it?**

 **Anyway, magic lessons, and (maybe) a backstory for the next chapter!**

 **Also thanks sooo much for writing such lovely reviews, it makes me feel so happy!**

 **Oh and it seems the new season is out... I am going to completely ignore it for now as it has no part whatsoever in this story, like just completely ignore it**


	13. First Lessons

**Don't really have much to say here right now, so just enjoy this chapter, and I'll be writing the next one immediately after!**

 **Chapter 8**

 **First Lessons**

Star Butterfly, the magical rebel princess of Mewni... Was not really having a great morning.

You see, even though she slept wonderfully, she woke up to find that her Marco-pillow, the very reason that she slept so well, was nowhere in sight.

"Awwww... I wanted to see his sleeping face still." she complained, pouting as she got up, to get ready for breakfast.

~~~~~~~~

When she got to the dining hall Jackie, Janna and Kelly were already there, waiting for her.

"Hey Star!" They said, waving to the princess.

"Morning guys!" Star replied, happily skipping to them.

"Have you seen Marco, I haven't seen him yet" Janna asked.

"Yeah, I was wondering where he was too, he wasn't there when I wok... In his room. He wasn't in his room I mean." Star said with a cough.

 _'Marco will probably freak out if I tell them we slept together.'_ Star thought to herself.

"Wait you haven't seen him either?" Kelly asked.

"Hmmm, I think I might know where he his." Kelly said.

"Really? Well let's go get him, it's almost time for breakfast" Star said.

"Wait, I know where **might** be, I don't know the exact place though." Kelly said.

"Huh?" Said said, tilting her head to the side.

"Where's the nearest place you can train here?" Kelly simply asked.

~~~~~~~

Meanwhile in an enclosed field inside the castle, supposedly acting as training grounds for the knights, Marco was busy practicing his karate punches and kicks on a wooden dummy, it hurt, but it helped clear his mind.

He needed that, especially since he woke up early this morning to find that Star was using him as a bodypillow, sure he was used to sleeping next to Star on the couch at home, but seeing her cling to him while she was asleep made him feel really embarrassed, also he kept thinking he'd be executed if her parents found out, so he was a definitely a bundle of nerves right now.

"Calm down Diaz, remember your training, breathe, just breathe." he said to himself as he steadied his breathing.

He continued for a little while more, before he got interrupted by the sound of someone opening the large wooden doors on the far end of the field.

"Marco! There you are." Star said, when she saw the boy.

"See, I told you he'd be here." Kelly said.

"Oh, hey guys, what's up?" He asked, as he picked up a towel and wiped the sweat from his face.

"It's almost time for breakfast, man." Janna said.

"Yeah, what are you doing training so early?" Jackie asked.

"No reason, just thought I'd warm up a bit before the day starts." Marco said.

"Anyway, thanks for calling me, I'll just take a bath and change out of my gi, I'll meet you guys at breakfast." Marco said, opening a portal and jumping through it.

"Hmm, yup, he really doesn't change, doesn't he?" Kelly said.

"What do you mean?" Star asked.

"Oh, didn't you know? Marco always practices and trains in the morning" Kelly said.

"Ohhhh yeah, I guess that's true, he's always breaking boards at home, and sometimes he does push ups" Star said.

"Wait, how'd you know he always trains in the morning?" Janna asked, looking at Kelly.

"I mean, I get how Star would know that, but how'd you know?" She added.

"Oh, that, well whenever we need to spend the night together, I'd always wake up to see him practicing his moves, sometimes he'd even spar with other people if he can." Kelly said.

"Wait, wait, wait, _spend the night together_ what do you mean?" Janna asked, utterly perplexed.

"Just that some quests we go on require us to either sleep in an inn or camp out with others" Kelly said with a shrug.

"And it's not really a big deal right? Most dimensions we go to has a different flow of time anyways, sometimes a week in one dimension is a day here, other times a couple of hours in one dimension is a week here" Kelly explained.

"Huh, I guess that's okay then..." Janna said.

 _'No, that is totally not okay! She can't just take Marco for herself'_ Janna thought to herself.

Breakfast went by without a hitch, which was surprising, as Marco thought that Star was gonna be all hyper given that she had friends in her home dimension staying over.

After breakfast they decided to take their puppies from a walk before they started training, with Kelly helping walk some of the laser puppies.

"Still can't believe that you guys have such cute puppies!" Kelly said, picking up and cuddling with two of the laser puppies and Night.

"I could magic you up a couple if you want." Star said, eagerly brandishing her wand.

"I don't think that's such a good idea Star" Marco said.

"Oh come onnnn." Star drawled.

"Nah, it's okay Star, I'm always out adventuring so I doubt I could properly take care of them." Kelly said.

"Buuuu" Star said, saddened that she couldn't make more cute and highly destructive puppies.

After they finished walking the puppies they all went to the training grounds Marco was in earlier, it was still empty which confused Marco.

"I thought there'd be more people here." He said.

"What made you think that?" Star asked.

"Well, this is a place to train right? Where are the knights?" He answered.

"Ohhhh, those guys practice somewhere else, this place is for princesses and Queens, the walls are special in the sense that they dampen magical damage done to them. In fact it's the same as the outerwalls of the castle." Star said.

"Hold up, you're saying we could let loose here?" Janna asked, a malicious glint in her eyes.

"Janna, I'd rather you not." Marco said.

At that Janna just grinned at him, making the boy shudder.

"Okay, then... How about you and Star warm up with some spells, and please don't overboard." Marco told them.

"Kelly, would you be okay practicing by yourself for now?" Marco asked.

"Eh, sure thing." Kelly said, moving towards one of the dummies and immediately cleaving it in half with her sword.

"Wait, how come we're not training in your mind?" Jackie asked.

"Oh, well... that's cause... Well, even though it's really convenient, in the sense that we don't get any physical strain when we train there, it's only good for theoretical practice and forming muscle memory for stuff like martial arts and mastering what you already know. However, we still need practical practice for what we do." Marco said.

"That and Queen Moon told me not to do it again for now, apparently it puts a little bit too much strain on me, I need to get used to it first little by little, hehe." Marco said, a small blush on his face.

 _'I'd rather they didn't know I was coughing up blood from the strain...'_ Marco thought too himself.

"Huh, okay then, what do you want me to do?" Jackie asked.

"Oh! Well I wanna help you practice doing something like that" Marco gestured to Star and Janna who were blasting each other with narwhals and bats and all sorts of other weird things.

"Well not exactly like that, but you know what I mean." Marco said.

"What? All I've ever done was control water man, doubt I could do what they do." Jackie said, pointing a thumb towards Star and Janna.

"You have no idea how much potential you have." Marco said quietly, oblivious to the blush on Jackie's face.

"I saw your mana, it's only gonna get stronger from here on out." Marco added, a small smile on his face.

However, after half an hour of failing to get Jackie to do any sort magic at all she was starting to get depressed.

"See... I can't do it" She said, in a sad tone.

Upon seeing the hurt look on her face Marco felt anger bubbling up inside him.

 _'Calm down Diaz, she okay, it's alright, ko one's hurting her. No need to get pissed here'_ he thought to himself.

Meanwhile, Star and Janna were still happily blasting away at each other. Star was blasting her happy carton-ish creature blasts and Janna was blasting things that would give Marco nightmares.

And Kelly, was taking a break, seeing as how she broke all of the dummies, it was the only thing she could do at the moment.

At this, Marco eyes immediately brightened up, an idea just popped into his head.

"That's it!" Marco exclaimed, startling Jackie.

"Wait here okay." He said, running to where Kelly was, and it seemed that Marco was asking her about something.

After a while Kelly took a couple of rapiers from her hair and handed them to Marco, who immediately rushed back.

"Jackie!" Marco yelled as he got closer.

"Uhh yeah?" She asked, slightly confused.

"You still remember how to fence right?" Marco asked.

At this Jackie was utterly confused and surprised.

"Yeah, my grandpa kinda drilled it into my head, why?" She said.

"Heh, yeah I remember, he was a tough teacher." Marco said, laughing a little.

"Wait, you still remember him?" Jackie asked.

"Uhh, yeah. Kinda hard to forget someone who trained me with bubbles you know." Marco said, grinning.

"Wait, he trained you too?" Jackie asked.

"Yeah, a little bit. I've been practicing on my own in my mind, but I haven't really been able to get a partner for this so I haven't really had a proper duel in a while." Marco said.

"Anyway, I wanna try having you channel your magic while we fence." Marco said.

"Really? Is that, like, a good idea?" She asked.

"Yeah, it's okay, Harrison told me that different people learn differently." Marco said.

It took a few minutes for to remember what to do, and Star gladly cast a spell to dull the swords so they do hurt each other.

"Okay, now I want you to just come at me, but at the same time I want you to try and focus on your magic, think of it as a calm sea, I know it must be hard since you've been keeping it in passive and not using it for so long, but you need to focus on drawing power from it, I want you to stir your magic, to open the tap if you will." Marco said.

To which Jackie just nodded, a look of determination on her face.

"And now... _En Garde._ Marco said, bringing the sword into position, with Jackie following suit.

 _"Êtes-vous Prêt!"_ Marco said, looking straight into Jackie's eyes.

 _"Oui!"_ Jackie answered.

 _"Allez!"_ Marco yelled almost immediately after Jackie answered and with that he lunged forward, thrusting his sword as he did so.

Jackie reacted quickly enough, she took a half step back and swung her sword to the left, deflecting the thrust.

However Marco didn't let up, he immediately pulled his arm back and struck once more, tagging Jackie in the shoulder.

"Again, _En Guarde!_ " Marco said, returning to his starting stance.

 _"Allez!"_ He said, this time however Jackie took the offensive, leaping forward and thrusting.

Marco had to hop back and parry the blow.

Jackie pushed forward, keeping Marco on the defensive, until he planted his feet firmly his stance kept his back straight, his sword arm facing forward, his other arm affixed to his back.

And just as Jackie trusted forward once more, he simply deflected it with a flick of his wrist and a shouting a resounding _"Parade"_ as he did so.

 _"Riposte!"_ Marco said, and with a swift thrust he hit Jackie in the left shoulder this time.

Jackie was almost out of breath now, but a defiant smile was on her face.

"Again." she said, as she got up.

 _"Allez!"_ This time it was Jackie that said this, thrusting forward as she did so.

In the earlier exchange of blows it had looked like Marco was composing a song, to which Jackie was dancing to.

Now though, they were both dancing, each leading the other in their own little waltz of blades.

They were no longer confined in simply moving forward and back, no, they were chasing each other now, with Marco doing backflips to dodge some blows and Jackie doing elaborate twirls to dodge and then retaliate immediately afterwards.

Star, Janna, and Kelly were mesmerized by the sight, however none of them noticed Jackie's sword was glowing blue, so it came as a shock to everyone there when Jackie defiantly yelled: _'Fendez Vous!!'_

Lunging and thrusting the sword just as she finished dodging a thrust from Marco, but just as the blade was about to connect to his chest, a wide column of wind erupted from her blade, hitting Marco square in the chest and sending him flying to the far wall.

"Marco!" Everyone, including Jackie, yelled, rushing forward to check on him, only to be surprised by Marco's soft laughter.

 _"Touché, mademoiselle"_ Marco said as he got up, a fierce light burning in his eyes

"Again!" He said with a grin, lunging forward once more.

"What? Didn't he just get thrown into the wall?" Janna asked, concerned for the dork.

"Woah, we, better get out of their way." Kelly said, trying to drag Star and Janna to the sidelines.

"But Marco could be hurt!" Star said.

"He could be, but Marco gets like that sometimes, it's best if we just watch for now, we'll butt in if things get too intense." Kelly said.

At that, Star and Janna reluctantly agreed.

"Just keep going Jackie, I'm good." Marco said, taking a swing at her.

"You sure man? We could stop and rest if you want." Jackie said, blocking the strike.

"No way, not while you're just starting to get it." Marco said, taking another swing at her.

"In that case, I won't hold back." Jackie said, swinging her sword in a sideways slash in front of her, shooting off a crescent wave of energy.

"Woah!" Marco said, bringing up his bracer's shield to block the attack.

"That was great!" Marco said, rushing forward with the shield out.

"Of course it was, did you forget how awesome I am?" Jackie jokingly said, rushing forward and locking blades with Marco.

"Not bad, not bad at all. Now, why don't you try focusing your magic onto your body try to think of it as spreading warmth, it'll give you a little boost." Marco instructed.

"I'll try" Jackie said, closing he eyes and concentrating.

After a little while, a faint blue glow seemed to surround her form, when she opened her eyes she couldn't help but blush, as Marco was a little too close her face since their blades were still locked together.

With an effort of will Jackie released another column of wind to throw Marco back.

And just as Marco landed, Jackie rushed in to try and pin him down, and true to Marco's words Jackie did in fact feel lighter and faster than earlier, having reached him in half the time it would've taken her originally.

However, just as she was thrusting her sword downward on Marco's still prone body, Marco reached forward, grabbing her right arm with his right, twisted around and brought his left arm around her throat in an almost embrace like manner.

"I... _Huff..._ Win." Marco said, a small grind on his face, and completely missing the fact that his face was right next to Jackie's.

"Heh... That was fun." Jackie said, also oblivious to how close their faces were.

"Okay, how about we take a bre..." Marco was saying, only to mumble out the last few words.

"Huh? What's wrong Marco?" Jackie said, turning her head to look at him, only to see that their faces were mere inches apart.

They immediately turned away from each other, furiously blushing.

This did not go unnoticed to the three other girls there.

And all of a sudden Marco got hit by a blast of magic, knocking him down, and as he got up he a can of soda was rolling by his feet.

 _Gah!_ Sorry Marco, I thought you might have wanted a drink after that, sorry." Star said meekly, blushing a little.

"Hahaha, it's okay Star, luckily it's just a _soft_ drink." Marco said.

"Ugh... Okay, that was a bad pun" He said as picked up the drink and opened it, taking a quick swig.

"Hmm, blueberry? Not bad, I guess. Anyway, how about we take a break Jackie?" Marco said.

"I kinda wanted to go on, but sure, I could use a break." Jackie said.

Up next, it was Star and Kelly who were gonna spar, with Star being told to switch between magic attacks, for long-range hits and to physical attacks whenever Kelly got too close, Kelly on the other hand was told to try and get within Star's guard, dodging or blocking her attacks, and to try and knock her down.

"Hmmm, they both need more finesse in their attacks." Marco said.

He was currently sitting on the ground, in between Janna and Jackie.

"Maybe some pointers in fencing would be good for them, they need to learn to use less exaggerated movements, what do you think?" Marco asked Jackie.

"Yeah, though they're plenty strong already don't you think? I think they might need more than just fencing lesson to perfect their forms." Jackie said.

"Hmmm" Marco said, mulling over his thoughts.

At this Janna simply turned away, pouting a little.

 _'And you're just gonna ignore me?'_ she thought.

"Something on your mind troublemaker?" Marco asked her.

"No." She said, a little harsher than she intended.

"Oh?" Marco said, silently leaning closer to her, then very carefully he abruptly blew into her ear and swiped her beanie.

 _Gyaah!_ She screamed as she stood up, covering her ear.

"You're dead Diaz!" She yelled, her face in a deep red blush.

"You gotta catch me first" Marco taunted as he moved away from Janna, playfully waving her beanie around.

"Ughh!" Janna just stomped her foot and proceeded to give chase.

"Uh oh.." Marco said, running away from the angered girl.

"Uhhh! Give it back!" She yelled, as she almost caught up to him.

"Nnnnoope!" He said, staying just out Janna's reach.

"Aarrgh." Janna just kept chasing him around.

Eventually Star and Kelly saw this and stopped sparring, with Star giggling at the sight of Janna being the one who's being messed with for once.

Marco was laughing out loud now, even Jackie was smiling at the sight.

 _'Just like when we were young'_ Jackie thought to herself, the memory making her chest tighten, and a single tear fell down the side of her face.

She had missed these moments.

After a few minutes Janna eventually remembered that she could use magic, so she shoots off a few blasts trying to stop Marco, but he was annoyingly nimble and he dodged all of the shots.

Getting irritated now Janna summons skeletal hands and shadowy tendrils to grab Marco's feet.

And it worked... A little too well, in fact, as it made Marco fall face first into the dirt.

 _" Ouf..._ " Was all Marco managed to say before getting a face full of dirt.

As Janna walked towards him, the tendrils and hands dissipated, releasing the boy.

"Ahahaha, okay you got me." Marco said as he got up, a stupid grin on his face.

Janna however was still a little miffed at him, so she didn't say anything, and just puffed her cheeks in anger.

"You know you look cute when you do that right?" Marco said, trying to suppress a laugh.

"Nnngh... Whatever. Just, gimme back my beanie." She said, a slight blush on her face as she extended her hand to Marco.

To which Marco just ignored and instead opted to put it on her himself, patting her head as he did so.

"Okay, how about we continue training then, eh?" He said, looking at the girls.

And they all agreed, with smiles on everyone's faces.

"Sorry, but I'm gonna be interrupting your training session here." Queen Moon said, as she entered the grounds.

"Oh, your Majesty, what brings you here? I can assure you Star hasn't set anything on fire... Yet. " Marco said.

"Yeah, I didn't start anything yet. Is there a problem mom?" Star asked, confused.

"Oh corns no, I just require a little chat with Marco here." Moon said, gesturing to the boy.

"Oh... Gladly your majesty." Marco said with a bow.

"You girls may continue, or if you wish you may relax and sightsee 'round the kingdom." Moon said.

The moment those words left Moon's mouth Star immediately got excited, listening the things they could do in her mind.

It was something Moon was used to, one single glance told her that Star was already planning things a proper princess shouldn't be doing, but then again Star has her own way of doing things, something a certain hoodie wearing someone once said, thought the queen.

"Marco, why don't you run along to the throne room and I'll catch up, okay?" Moon said.

"Uh.. Okay." Marco said, exiting the grounds.

"Now girls, I want you all to be careful okay? Don't run too wild now, you especially Star." Moon said.

"Yeah, yeah, we got it mom." Star said cheerfully.

"And be back by lunch, we'll be having magic lessons after." Moon said.

"Awwww do we have too?" Star complained.

"Of course! Besides... didn't your lessons help you out last night?" Moon said, smiling a little.

"Huh?" Star said, confused.

"Oh, nothing. Just make sure to thank Gemma for those _singing_ _lessons,_ when you have the time, dear." Moon said, giggling a little.

"... MOM!" Star said, hiding her blushing face behind her hair.

"Well then I'm off." She said as she went back inside.

~~~~~~~~~~

Marco was waiting in the throne room, looking at the tapestries and paintings to pass the time.

It didn't take long for the queen to arrive though, and when she did Marco made sure to properly bow.

"Your majesty." Marco said.

"It's okay Marco, raise your head." Moon said.

He did as told and looked at the queen.

"How are you Marco? Are you enjoying it here so far?" Moon asked, much to Marco's confusion.

"Oh, I'm fine, my head doesn't really hurt at all. And ugh, I guess I'm liking it her so far, I really like the twin moons at night." He said.

"That's good to hear. Now, I know that we already discussed this yesterday, but do you really trust that girl wielding dark magic?" Moon asked, her face emotionless.

Marco was taken aback by this, they had already talked about this, he thought that moon was already okay with this.

"With all due respect your majesty, Janna is one of my closest friends, I stake my own life to vouch for her, I swear to you that she has no ill intentions, towards Star or Mewni itself. So plea..." Marco was saying, before being silenced by moon's raised hand.

Moon simply looked at him and smiled, which further confused Marco.

"Such a wonderful friend you are my boy, I am glad Star is in your care. But do not fret, I simply have a proposition for you, I mean no harm to you or any of your friends, and I apologize for jumping to conclusions yesterday." Moon said

"Ummm... Okay, and what of this proposition, Queen Moon?" Marco asked.

"I wish you to teach Star all you know of dark magic." Moon said gravely.

Marco was taken aback by such a request, as far as Marco knew, the Butterfly family resented dark magic.

"Of course, but if I may ask, why? And can't Glossaryck do it?" Marco asked.

"Unfortunately no, Glossaryck, although he knows a lot, his knowledge is limited to what the book knows, and what the book knows is simply all that the Butterfly family knew, and the only time dark magic was ever used in our family was during Eclipsa's reign, and she was resented for it, and most of her knowledge was locked away, even from Glossaryck himself. "Moon said.

"You however, you've been tirelessly trying to study magic in all its forms without bias ever since Star came into your life, why is that?" Moon asked the boy.

"Oh, I was hoping to try and help Star master her wand, for various reasons... *flashbacks to his destroyed room when Star first arrived, ahem, anyway, I didn't really find anything specific about the Butterfly family magic, other than it was powerful and nearly limitless, I did however, learn a lot about the various different magics in my time in Hpoo's dimension" Marco said.

"I see, then you would have no problem teaching Star?" Moon asked.

"Nope, but ugh, why would you like Star to know about it?" Marco asked.

"Oh, about that..." Moon said, rubbing her gloved arms.

"I just wish her to be prepared any sort of situation... And our prejudice against dark magic is, frankly speaking, absurd, if not, downright stupid." Moon said bluntly.

To which Marco simply smiled.

"Very well, I shall take care of your daughter" Marco said, bowing to the Queen.

At this, the queen tried to suppress her laughter.

 _'Oh, you're taking great care of her already, are you not?'_ Moon thought to herself.

And just then a royal guard clutching a note, burst into the room.

"Your majesty! I apologize for disturbing you, but I've urgent news! The princess and her companions has been taken captive!" He said.

The moment the last word left his lips, he felt a wave of oppressing bloodlust wash over him for a split second.

"What!? Who would dare attempt such an act?" Moon said.

"It's the White Weavers, your majesty." The guard said.

"Them again... This has got to be their boldest move yet." Moon said.

"Go, use any means necessary to bring back my daughter and her friends. What a terrible time for River to be off on business." Moon said, rubbing her temples.

"Queen Moon, I request to join in the mission to look for Star and our friends." Marco said, the queen had temporarily forgotten that he was there.

"Marco, I apologi..." Moon was saying, but as she looked up she saw the determination burning in his eyes.

'I couldn't keep him here even if I wanted to.' Moon thought to herself.

"Very well, you may assist in the mission, but be very careful Marco." Moon said.

"Thank you, Queen Moon." Marco said with a bow.

"Well... This isn't exactly what I hoped for." Janna said, looking around the dark room they were in.

"Yeah, I didn't really expect being kidnapped, though I'm not really surprised at all." Jackie said.

"Ghhh... Why can't I break this stupid rope." Kelly said, struggling against her bindings.

"Yeah, sorry about this guys, if I just paid more attention, they wouldn't have gotten the jump on us." Star said.

"Chill girl, it wasn't your fault. Besides we were distracted trying to help fight that huge crab... Where did it even come from?" Jackie said.

"I have no idea. Mewni crabs get big, but not as big as that thing was." Star said.

"Hey, what do you think it'll taste like of we cook it?" Kelly asked.

"Probably pretty damn good. You guys think Marco will cook it for us?" Janna asked.

"Ohhhhh, I'd like that." Jackie said.

"Well, we better practice our puppy dog eye's then." Star said, looking at them with her puppy dog eyes as an example.

"Yeah, and if you pout it's impossible for him to resist" Kelly said with a giggle.

"Oi, aren't you feelin a lil too laid back there?" A man dressed in all black clothes like a ninja, who was standing guard asked.

"Nope." They answered in unison.

"For real?" He asked.

"Yup, Marco's gonna kick your butt in a few minutes." Star said.

And the others there simply nodded in agreement.

"Damn, y'all are crazy. Aren't you putting a little too much faith in that guy?" He asked, scratching his head.

And just then a deafening crash was heard from the other room, followed by indistinct shouting.

"Nah, I think it's juuuust the right amount of faith." Star said, just as a man was thrown through the door.

"Where are they?" A familiar voice shouted, followed by other voices asking the same thing.

"Marco! We're in here." Star shouted.

"Damn. Didn't think they'd find us that fast." The one guarding them said.

And just as Marco burst into the room, the man in black vanishing in a cloud of smoke.

"Hmpf, coward." Kelly commented.

After looking around the room to make sure there weren't any other threats, Marco bent down and scooped the girls into a huge hug.

"I'm so glad you guys are okay." He said.

"Hehe, well we are now." Star said with a grin.

"And could you cut the ropes now? As much as I like being tied up, it's starting to hurt." Janna said.

"Why do you have to be like that Jann?" Marco said as he took a knifes and cut them loose.

"Eh, just am." She said with a shrug.

"Well, I'm just glad you're all safe, let's go." He said, as he led them out of the room.

And what the girls saw in the other room was a complete and utter mess, chairs and tables were broken, the door leading outside was barely hanging on its hinges, their kidnappers were worse off, a lot of them were passed out face first on the floor, one was impaled to the wall by a spear stuck to his shoulder, a couple of guys were thrown through the walls, and one guy had his head stuck into the ceiling.

The royal guards were rounding up the gang, some simply picked up the unconscious ones and piled them on the corner.

"Woah, guess they really care about their princess huh..." Janna said.

"Yeah..." Marco said simply, looking at the unconscious bodies, an unreadable expression on his face.

"Tericius, I'm gonna go ahead and report to the Queen. I'm leaving the rest here to you okay?" Marco said, opening a portal and gesturing for Star and the others to go through.

"Oh, and keep one alive for me will ya?" He said, just as the others went and hopped into the portal.

"I'd like to have a little chat with one of them if possible." he added as he hopped into the portal as well.

"Damn... He scares me sometimes" a soldier said, looking to where the portal was a moment ago.

"Just be glad he's on the princess' side" Tericius said, looking at the man impaled by the spear.

"And, take that spear out of that man before he bleeds to death." He added.

"tsk, he was the one who said no killing if we could've helped it, yet he spears the first man he sees and sends the next through a wall." a soldier complained.

"Like Tericius said, count yourself lucky he's on our side." another soldier said.

"Yeah, and pray for whatever fool that gets in between him and the princess." Tericius said.

Moon was pacing around the throne room, worried about her daughter and her friends.

"The guards will take care of it, plus Marco is there as well, calm down Moon" she said to herself.

And then, the sound of a portal opening, snapped the queen out of her thoughts.

"Woo! And we're back!" Star proclaimed.

"Star!" Moon said, rushing over to hug her daughter.

"Awww, don't worry mom, were fine." Star said, hugging her mom.

"Yes, I can see that, I'm glad none of you got hurt." Moon said.

"Wait, where's Marco?" Moon asked.

"Oh, here I am, sorry I got caught up a bit." Marco said, hopping out the portal.

"Glad to see you're all alright..." Moon said.

"And I... I know I said that you could all stay here for, but with this incident it seems it isn't safe." Moon said.

"What? Mom! That's not fair!" Star said.

"Oh, honey I'm sorry, but this is for the best." Moon said, hugging Star.

"Look, your father will return within a week at most, until then how about you stay low for a while, I'll try to get rid of those bandits for the meantime, I promise I'll call you when it's safe to return with your friends okay?" Moon said.

"Okay..." Star said, nodding.

They were now in Star's room, discussing what they were gonna do.

"Sorry guys, looks like our plans got ruined." Star said sadly.

"No sweat Star, besides your mom said we could be back in a week right?" Jackie said.

"Yeah, no worries. Though I really did wanna check this place out." Janna said.

"Well, it cant be helped, cause of those guys we gotta leave for now." Marco said, hiding his clenched fists in his hoodie pocket.

"Hey... You know, we could stay at my place." Kelly suggested.

"What? Kelly, that could be dangero..." Marco was saying, but they all looked at him puppy dog eyes.

" Urk... Fine!" Marco said, giving in to their ridiculousness, throwing his hands up.

"But, are you sure Kells?" Marco asked.

"Mhh-hmm, yup I'm sure." She said.

"Okay, you guys get all your stuff ready then." Marco said.

"Oh, no need I can just magic them up!" Star said.

"sigh... Fine, whatever." Marco said, cutting open a wavy pink portal.

"Come on then." He said, walking through the portal.

"Yeah, let's go guys." Kelly said, excitedly following Marco through the portal.

"Huh?" Star said, tilting her head.

"Wait... How does Marco know how to portal to Kelly's house?" Jackie asked.

"Hey, you guys coming or what?" Marco said, poking his head through the portal.

"Oh, yeah on our way." Star said.

"Ok then..." Marco said going back into the portal.

Going through the portal they didn't really expect what they saw.

"Hey... We're home?" Star asked.

"Heh, you know, Marco said something like that when he first came here" Kelly said.

"Really?" Star asked.

"Yeah, we're in Kelly's house right now. It just looks kinda the same as our home for some reason." Marco said as he stretched and sat on the couch, a long content sigh escaping his lips.

Looking around, the place really was similar to the Diaz residence, albeit with different decor and color scheme, the layout of the room was almost a carbon copy of the Diaz's.

"Hey, we just got here! No sleeping."Kelly said, gently whacking Marco's head.

"Oh, sorry, force of habit." Marco said with a yawn as he stood back up, stretching as he did so.

"Anyway, you guys can pick out which room you want, there're enough empty rooms here for everyone." Kelly said.

"Cool! But will your parents be okay with this?" Jackie asked.

At the mention of her parents, Kelly looked despondent and sad.

"Kelly's living on her own, so its okay." Marco said, rubbing the top of Kelly's head as he did so.

"Oh... Um, last one to choose their room has to buy lunch!" Janna yelled, trying to change the topic, running up the stairs, followed closely by Star and Jackie.

'Hmmm, gotta talk to Marco about this later.' Janna thought to herself.

"Hey, I'm not a puppy you know." Kelly said, looking at Marco who was still rubbing her head.

"Oh, you want me to stop?" He asked, taking his hand away.

"...no" Kelly said, grabbing Marco's hand.

Marco then resumed what he was doing, a small smile on his face.

"Oh... The puppies! We forgot the puppies." Marco said, suddenly remembering.

"Nope." Kelly said, as one by one the puppies stuck their adorable little faces out of Kelly's hair.

"Hehe, this one is my favorite." Kelly said, nuzzling Day.

"I just love the little tuft of hair on his head, look its a mohawk now." Kelly said, as she styles it.

"Hahahaha, but no. My little Lucifer is a proper puppy, so no mohawks." Marco said, playfully messing up Day's hair.

"Oh, it's almost lunch." Marco said, looking at a clock.

"Hey, why don't you take the girls and go sightseeing around town, maybe buy them some gear if you find any good ones, you can use this." Marco said as he opened up a small portal and took out a heavy looking pouch, and gave it to Kelly.

"Really? You sure?" Kelly asked.

"Uh huh, just be sure to be back in an hour and a half. And this time please call me if something happens." Marco said.

"Okay!" Kelly said cheerfully.

"Heyyy! We finished picking our rooms!" Star yelled as she jumped down the stairs.

"Hey, Star, why don't you guys go take a walk around town for a bit while I cook lunch." Marco said.

"Yaaaay!" Star said, dragging Janna and Jackie down the stairs, and pushed everyone outside excitedly.

"Hahaha, always full of energy aren't you Star?" Marco said to himself.

"Now, what will I make for lunch?" Marco asked himself, putting on an apron.

The girls were making their way through the busy main market square, looking around shops and just generally having fun.

"Woah! This feels just like an rpg" Janna said.

"Yeah, it's kinda hard to tell the difference at times, there are even guilds here you know." Kelly said.

"Oh yeah, didn't you say you and Marco were part of one?" Jackie asked.

"Uh-huh, but my guild is in another town." Kelly said.

"Cool, think we can join in?" Janna asked.

"Sure, we can register you guys tomorrow if you want." Kelly said.

"Is Marco in the same guild as you?" Star asked.

"No, he's in a different guild, one based in Lady Hekapoo's dimension, I forgot the name though." Kelly said.

"Oh hey! How about we get some gear? You'll need it if you want to go on quests." Kelly said.

"Sweet! We're gonna go on a quest?" Jackie asked excitedly.

"I mean yeah, why not?" Kelly said.

"Do we really need armor? I mean Marco and Star go on adventures in just their clothes." Janna said.

"Of course you do! It keeps your insides from becoming your outsides, besides even Marco wears special armor." Kelly said.

"Anyway, follow me." Kelly said leading them inside a shop.

"Aaannnd there." Marco said, as he set the table.

"Now, they should be here any moment now." He said.

"MARCO WE'RE BACK!" Star and Kelly screamed as they came in.

"And there they are." Marco said, chuckling a little.

"Hey, welcome back." Marco said, turning around to look at them.

It seems that they bought some new equipment when they went out.

Jackie had black leather greaves that cover her shin up to her knees and silver white gauntlets, Janna went full on witch with a black pointed witch's hat and a black cloak that reached down to below her knees, Star also went with a cloak however hers was hooded and snow white, it only reached down to her lower back and it was open fronted, Kelly just went with simple fingerless black gloves.

"Wow, you guys look cute, in an rpg-esq way." Marco said.

"Hehe, they're not just for looks you know." Star said.

"Yeah! They're awesome, mine and Kelly's are said to improve our movements, and Star and Janna's are great for defense!" Jackie said excitedly.

"Oh? Well, how about we test them out later after we finish lunch then" Marco said.

"Yes! Quest time!" Janna shouted, pumping her hands to the air.

"Nonono, not yet. We'll take a quest tomorrow after we finish registering you to a guild, same guild as Kelly's to be exact." Marco said, wagging his finger at Janna.

"Why can't we join the same guild as you?" Star asked.

"Hekapoo made me run, in nothing but my underwear, around the town when I joined her guild in her dimension, as an initiation." Marco stated.

"Never mind." Star said.

"Well it's okay, we can still go on quests together, all guilds **are** interconnected after all." Marco said.

"And come on, lunch is ready." He added, gesturing them to sit.

"Yay! Tacos!" Star yelled, already at the table.

"Woah, haven't had these in a while" Kelly said, taking a seat.

"Yes! You've got any hot sauce?" Janna asked.

"Yup, here" Marco said, handing her some.

"Also, here's some extra cheese for you, and salsa for Jackie, and _*shudder*_ some blasphemous sugar for Star." Marco added, as he placed them on the table.

"You add sugar to your tacos?" Kelly asked, taken aback.

"Yeah, also on burritos!" Star said, dumping sugar on her taco before taking a bite.

"... Sacrilege." Kelly said, shaking her head in disapproval.

"Wow, this is great! And hey, can't believe you still remember I like extra salsa on my tacos" Jackie said, taking a bite.

"Umm.. Uhhh.. Yeah." Marco said, hiding his blush.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Okay, so no one stray too far from the group" Marco said.

"I'm looking at you Star." Marco added as Star was about to run off.

It had been half an hour after they had finished eating lunch, Marco wanted to wait a little longer before they started training, but they were all so excited to try how well their gear held up that Marco wasn't able to say no.

Star, Janna, and Jackie were decked out in the gear that they bought earlier.

Kelly however, switched off her oversized sweater for a purple sleeveless shirt and a white vest, with a red scarf wrapping around her neck and shoulders, her new gloves adorned her hands.

"Okay then, there're only slimes in this area so it should be okay to just spread out and take them down on your own." Marco said.

"Remember what I told you all, they're resistant to most physical attacks but are weak to magic, here I want you all to focus on using non area of effect spells, so that means no torching the whole field, no blowing them away with tornadoes, no trampling them with magical warnicorns, and no black holes. Just focus on one slime at a time, or you could also use weapons to peirce their cores, that'll kill them instantly." Marco instructed them.

"Yes sir!" They all said collectively.

And off they went, causing slime genocide.

Star went about blasting them with her usual spells, although some were still wild and random some shots were actually hitting the slime dead center, her control had gotten better. Marco was about to compliment her on this until she got bored and decided to take out a ten strong group of slimes by dropping a huge magical flaming waffle on them.

 _'Never mind'_ Marco thought to himself.

Janna on the other hand, was doing pretty well controlling her spells, she took out lots at the same time but she didn't break the rules as she was using multiple bolts of crackling green energy that struck one slime each. And she'd even bat away the slimes that got too close to her or tried to jump at her, using one of her twin short wooden staves. It was all going well, until she picked up a rock, turned it around her hands a bit then threw it to a group of slimes which then exploded in a glorious ball of pink flames as she laughs maniacally.

"Well, she held out longer than I thought at least." Marco said to himself.

Looking over to Jackie now, Marco saw her mainly using her sword, it was a thin basket-hilted sword that was great for both thrusting and slashing, her blade was glowing a slight blueish tint as Jackie wielded it, reminding Marco of a laser sword he saw in those movies; Jackie herself was also extruding a light blue aura as she gracefully danced around the field, however when she did an upward slash at a slime that jumped at her, a small tempest of wind and ice emanated from her blade, traveling in a straight line, decimating the slimes in its wake.

"Well... At least we're away from people and buildings." Marco commented.

Looking over to Kelly he saw her slicing slimes left and right, then out of nowhere, she stopped and looked over to the edge of the forest near them, took out a knife from her hair and chucked it into woods, five seconds later a roaring four armed brown bear came bounding out of the forest, a knife sticking out of its shoulder, rushing over to it, Kelly swung her sword, cutting off two of the bear's left arms and following up with a spin and another slash she cut into its chest, killing it.

"What happened to hunting just slimes Kelly?" Marco asked no one.

Happily rushing over to Marco, Kelly said:

"Marco, I caught dinner!" She said with an innocent smile.

"Er... Good job Kelly." Marco said, patting her head.

"But we're gonna have to have a butcher work on it first, we'll have some of it for lunch tomorrow, that okay?" Marco said.

"Okay" Kelly said, nodding.

"Okay, that's enough guys!" Marco yelled.

"That should be enough practice for today." Marco said.

"Awww, but I was having so much fun." Janna said.

"No more Janna, besides you guys need to rest, we're gonna have to register you guys tomorrow." Marco said.

At that Marco took out a scroll, which when he opened up sucked in all the slime cores littered about, another scroll swallowed up the bear.

"Now that that's taken care of, let's take the scenic route back." He said.

"Oh? Never figured you for a nature guy Marco." Jackie said.

"Whaaat? Marco is totally a nature guy! He takes care of all the plants at home, and he has a tiny little potted plant in his room by the window, and even though he tries to hide it, everytime we gonna on adventures he always enjoys looking at different plants and animals we see." Star said.

"Now that I think about it, yeah, he does tend to get lost in thought when he looks at things like a field of flowers or a nesting bird" Kelly said, tapping her chin.

"Yeah, he also really likes taking naps under trees, and thinking about what shape the clouds look like." Janna added.

With every word they said, Marco hung his head lower and lower till he was laying on his side in fetal position, his hoodie hiding his furiously blushing face.

"Awww, come on Marco, it's nothing to be embarrassed about, I think it's cute you actually like to get in touch with nature." Jackie said.

"Want me to carry you back?" Kelly asked, kneeling down and poking Marco's side.

"...no" Marco said as he got up, his face still blushing deep red.

"Hehe, you look cute when you blush you know." Janna said.

"Right Star? Star?" Janna said, looking around.

"Where's Star?" She asked.

"Huh?" Kelly said, looking around.

"Oh, there she is." Jackie said, pointing to where Star was.

"Hey Star, come back." Marco yelled, his blush slowly going away.

"Yeah... Just... I wanna check this out first." She replied, yelling.

"What is it?" Marco asked, still yelling.

"It's a shining floating ball of light..." Star said, reaching out to poke it.

"Floating lig... STAR DON'T TOUCH IT!" Marco yelled, his eyes wide as he dashed to the princess.

Too late, Star's finger poked the light, which quivered for a moment before floating up higher, the boulders scattered around them all around started flying up to the light, the ground and sand around them was also sucked up to the ball of light, slowly forming a huge humanoid shape made of interlocking rocks and dirt, with two glowing yellow eyes.

"Earth elemental." Marco quietly said, looking up at the creature.

"Well... Good news is, you guys get to practice more. Bad news is, you guys are gonna get to practice **a lot** more." Marco said.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Some time had already passed since the fight with the elemental began, however they couldn't do any damage to it, as anything they do it is almost instantly regenerated, it keeps absorbing the nearby earth and rocks to repair itself.

"Dammit. Why can't we scratch this thing?" Marco said, dodging a hit.

Over the course of the fight the elemental had grown two more arms, making it harder to evade.

"I'm gonna distract it again, Janna try to bind it, Jackie, Star, freeze its joints, Kelly try cutting off its head one more time." Marco said.

Marco threw a knife, which embedded itself in the center of the elemental's forehead, getting its attention, after which Marco dashed in between its legs, careful to avoid its arms this time.

Angered by the hit, the elemental crouched down to try and crush the boy, but since it went between his legs the elemental had to turn around.

"Janna now!" Marco yelled.

And as the elemental bent down, shadowy tendrils wrapped themselves around its form, and then twin blasts of magic froze its knees and arms to the ground.

Jumping onto its back Kelly runs to its head and with a great swing took off its head.

With that, the elemental's body jolted violently, shaking Kelly off, but luckily Marco managed to catch her.

"Is it dead? I really want it to be dead now." Janna asked.

"I... I think so." Marco said.

"Finally! And uhh... Could you please let me down now." Kelly said, a light blush on her face.

"Oh, yeah, sor..." Marco was saying, in the process of gently letting Kelly down.

"It's still alive." Jackie said, interrupting what Marco was saying.

"Oh come on! We killed it like six times now!" Star complained.

"Ughhh! Why the heck isn't it deadly yet?" Marco complained as well.

He looked over to his friends, thinking they might be exhausted now, only to see them perfectly fine, they're not even out of breath.

'Wait... No. It can't be.' He thought to himself.

"Are you guys still holding back?" Marco asked.

"Uhhh, yeah." Jackie said.

"Part of the training right?" Star asked.

"That's what you said right?" Janna asked.

"I mean, that's what you told us to do right?" Kelly said.

 _'Wow! Now that's dedication. Better reward them for this later.'_ Marco thought to himself.

"Okay, you guys can let loose now." Marco said.

And with that, Star's wand began glowing a fierce pink glow, a silhouette of purple wings flashing behind her, Janna's hands ignited in vibrant green energy, and a small silvery flame flickering between red and blue hues lit up in front of her forehead, Jackie's seashell necklace glowed brilliant blues, rimmed at the edges with even brighter red, and around her feet a whirlwind of water and raw magic spun, and as the red lines begun appearing on Kelly's form, a small shockwave of red energy emanated from her, her eyes taking on a light orange color.

It was a display of raw, awesome, unadulterated power; and Marco's eyes we're completely glued to the sight.

A single word escaped his lips:

"Beautiful..." He whispered.

And as if they were of one mind, Star, Janna, and Jackie shot off three massive beams of raw magical power, blasting away the whole top half of the elemental, leaving just the legs and a little bit above it, the excess energy flying off into space, what remained was the elemental's massive crystal core stuck to the lower half of the elemental's body.

And it was starting to regenerate again.

But then, Kelly, jumping with such force that a crater formed from where she jumped, and with a powerful swing she cut the crystal in half, along with whatever was left of the elemental's body.

And on top of that, she stuck the landing, only to fall down due to exhaustion not a second later, in complete sync with Star, Janna, and Jackie also collapsing.

~~~~~~~~~

 _'It had been a couple of hours after the fight now, the girls were still in bed, I already made dinner, but if they can't handle it I'll make soup for them.'_ Marco thought to himself as he walked down the street.

 _'Luckily the guild wasn't too crowded and the butcher wasn't busy, I managed to do what I needed to do with no problem, now I can check up on them.'_ He thought to himself.

He was making his way down the street now, Kelly's house was in sight now.

"It really does look like my home, huh? Just one story shorter and without a garage... Guess it's bigger on the inside." Marco said to himself.

He was inside now, and what he saw made him turn pale as a ghost...

"What the heck are you guys doing out of bed!" He half yelled at the girls.

They were in the kitchen, sitting around the table and chatting with each other.

"Oh, welcome back Marco" Kelly said.

"Didn't I specifically write that none of you were to get out of bed?" He asked, his hands on his hips as he scolded them.

"Yup!" They all said, each raising a piece of paper up, it was Marco's notes to each of them in case they woke up.

" _sigh..._ Well, you guys wanna eat?" Marco asked, a smile on his face.

And a collectively "Yes!" was the answer.

They all spent about another hour after eating, to watch a movie, but the movie wasn't even halfway through when they all fell asleep.

All except Marco, who still had one more thing to do.

After tucking in each of the girls, Marco opened up a portal and walked out, to find himself at spear point.

"It's me guys." He said as he took down his hood, his tone was monotonous.

"So, where is he?" He asked, still in the same tone.

"In there, but you won't get anything out of him, he's under a blood pact." A mewan royal guard said.

"It's okay." Marco said, entering the dark and damp room, which was empty, save for the man chained to the corner.

"Heh, 'nother one eh? I've already told ye, thick buggers, I'm under a blood oath, I can't talk to ye even if I wanted te. Which I don't, for the record." He said, a crazed laugh coming from him.

Marco walked over to the man and knelt down to look at his face.

The man spat on Marco's face, which Marco simply wiped away.

The man's face was beaten, but it was a child's work.

Just some minor bruising and a lump or two there. Pathetic.

"Its okay, I don't need you to talk." Marco said, gently placing his hand on the man's face.

 **"I just need you to scream."** He said, his eyes turning blood red.

And that night, the sound of that man's agonized scream would haunt the dreams of the two guards outside for days to come.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 **Ugh! So sorry this is late you guys.**

 **Anyway, I hope that this chapter** **isgood enough that you forgive the tardiness. Also yes, I would absolutely love fanart based on this. Also we get to see a little 'dark side' of Marco here in the last bit, and yes he would kill for his friends. (that guy is ok though).**

 **Also! Do know that Jackie is not limited to wind and water magic, that's just her forte, like Janna with spooky witchy stuff and Star with cute bubbly stuff and Marco with... Oh, almost spoiled something there.**

 **En Guarde- take your stance**

 **Êtes-vous prêt- are you ready?**

 **Oui- yes**

 **Parade- parry the sword (to parry)**

 **Riposte- to counter, a retort (an attack directly after a parry.)**

 **Allez- to go.**

 **Fendez vous- Lunge and thrust.**


	14. I'm out of my funk!

**Woo! Okay so I'm outta my funk and I'm back at work now, and I'm crazier than ever! And yes I am currently working on the next chapter. But I had an idea, and I'm gonna need you guys to help me, just ask questions, that's it; I'm gonna be trying something. It's just an idea that popped into my head and I wanna try it out. Also don't worry I won't abandon this story, not my nature to just leave something unfinished. And hey, thanks for the pancakes random guy/girl/thing! (but I now unfortunately have syrup in my hair /)** **On a side note, it seems that my other story is gaining steam... That fact both pleases and displeases me at the same time.** **On another side note, I'm really tempted to start another story, that way my friend, good ol' Deadline Demon will be breathing down my neck, making me work faster... In theory.** **And here's a teaser scene y'all should be expecting in a future chapter.**

"We apologize your majesty" said the soldier as he bowed deeply towards his queen.

"I swear to you that we kept our distance from the beast, but..." He said.

"But what, soldier? You need not be afraid." The queen said.

Swallowing his fear, and slight build up of saliva in his mouth, he answered:

"We kept our distance... But it... It threw a _mountain_ at us... You're majesty." He said grimly, shaking with fear.

 **And scene.** **Well then, I hope you guys are excited for that! Anyway, don't forget to ask questions (try to keep it, about the story) ok?** ***Rides off into the sunset***


	15. The Blood Rose

**Heyyo! I managed to get myself out of the funk I was in, so woooo! Anyway, you may have noticed that I started a different story, and I do plan on updating it alongside this story, but don't worry as this story is still my top priority in updating, as I've already decided on a weekly update for this (But I do love my stories equally) Anyway, I hope you all had/will have a wonderful day today! Cheers!**

 **Chapter 9**

 **The Blood Rose** **Guild**

The girls had woken up to see Marco asleep by the table in the kitchen, various bits of crystals were littered in front of him, some were brightly colored while some looked pale white, and besides all of those crystals were the gear the girls bought yesterday, however they all looked a little different.

Janna's cloak and hat which were once pure black now had color, a simple pink band decorated the base of the hat, and softly glowing blue runes adorned the inside of both the hat and black cloak plus there was a small green bat stylized on the collar of the cloak, for Jackie, her gauntlets and greaves also had glowing runes on the inside, and the outside of her gauntlets, specifically the parts that covered the back of her hands were each decorated glowing pink lines shaped like the seashell she wore around her neck, Kelly's gloves also had glowing runes on the inside, and on the outside both gloves were decorated with two bright red swords, one was a regular long sword and the other resembled Kelly's greatsword, crossed at the center forming an X, and lastly, Star's cloak also had the glowing runes on the inside and on the outside was an intricate golden butterfly design made with what seemed to be liquid gold as the color seemed to flow about.

But that they didn't even notice that, because they were more focused on the boy's sleeping face.

"Should we try to wake him up?" Jackie asked quietly, gently poking Marco's face.

"You try and wake him up, I'm taking pictures." Janna said, as she proceeded to do just that.

Star went and picked up a lasers puppy and had it lick Marco's face, to which Marco responded by weakly waving his hand in front of him, as if to shoo away a fly, but he was still very much asleep.

"Awwww, can't we just keep staring at him for a few more minutes?" Kelly asked, propping her elbows up on table and resting her chin on her hands as she stared at Marco's face.

And as she said that a soft _'nyuuu~'_ was heard from Marco as he slightly adjusted his sleeping position, his face having an agitated look for just a second before it got replaced by a happy and content look as he settled down.

"Ten more minutes." The girls all said at the same time.

~~~~~~~~~~

An unknown amount of time has passed, and by chance a beam of light has found its way onto Marco's face, effectively stirring him awake.

Marco had opened his ever so slightly at the sudden beam of light, why it traveled the thousands of miles of space just to shine on his face and disrupt his sleep was beyond him. But he was awake now, and there was no use crying over spilt milk.

Blinking the sleep out of his eyes he looked at the various crystals and gear in front of him.

 _'Oh yeah, I was fixing up their gear last night, I wonder if they'll like it._ He thought to himself as he stretched.

And he was just about to get up when a very familiar voice rang out:

"MORNING MARCO!" Star yelled, startling Marco out of his chair and onto the floor.

 _"Ughh..._ Morning Star" he grumbled as he picked himself up and dusted himself off.

"Oh... Ugh... sorry Marco..." Star said sheepishly, scratching her cheek in embarrassment.

"It's okay, anyway are the others still asleep? I've got something for you gu..." Marco was saying, until looked behind Star and saw that Jackie, Janna, and Kelly were already awake, and for some reason they were in standing in line looking at literally everywhere else but at him, all of them were blushing for some reason.

"Okaaaay then... I'd ask what you guys are up to, but I've had a long night, and I have something to show you all." Marco said with a yawn.

"Tadaa..." Marco sleepily said with a flourish, showing them the gear they bought yesterday.

"Ummm... What?" Janna asked, confused as to what he meant

"We bought those things though..." Jackie said, also confused as to what Marco meant.

At this Marco just rolled his eyes and smirked.

"I upgraded them." Marco said, picking up Janna's cloak and showing them the glowing runes.

"Woah... What did you do to it?" Janna asked, taking the cloak from Marco.

"Oh nothing much... Just that it's now fire proof, bullet proof, basically everything proof, shock absorbent, adjusts the temperature so you'd be comfortable whether in extreme heat or cold, and it's completely breathable!" Marco said, obviously proud of his work.

"I did the same with Star's too, I mean they were already great to begin with, equipment from Glazgo's shop always is. But you can never be too careful" Marco said matter-of-factly.

"Now, for Jackie's and Kelly's, at first they just boosted your bodies, kinda like having a constant sugar that doesn't stop, well I made it better. That and I made it so that if you get hit it'll make a whole body barrier to block it, but don't rely on it too much, it can only handle so much before failing and sending out a feedback of energy all around you." Marco said, handing them their gear.

The girls, excluding Kelly, were wide eyed at the gifts.

"Woah, this is so cool!" Janna and Star said, holding the cloak above Star's wand, which was on fire.

Jackie put on her gauntlets and did a few punches, which turned into full on shadow boxing, she was surprised how light she felt.

Kelly however glared at Marco.

"You hurt yourself again." She simply stated, crossing her arms.

At that the girls all stopped what they were doing and they turned to look at Marco.

"What?" They chourused.

"What? Nonono, it's nothing." Marco said, holding his hands up, one of which was covered in bandages and multiple band-aids.

"And what do you call those?" Kelly said, pointing at his hands

"Umm... Hands?" Marco said, laughing a little.

But a glare from Kelly shut him up.

"Okay fine, but it's not that bad, I swear. I needed to soak the thread in my blood and ink for it to work" Marco said.

 _"sigh..._ Did you really have to do that?" Kelly asked, concern written all over her face.

"Of course! I'd rather lose a bit of blood now than lose any of you guys later!" He said.

 _"Nggh..._ Fine. Whatever." Kelly said, looking away.

"And what did you use the crystals for?" Jackie asked, picking one up from the table and turning it over in her hand.

"Oh, I used those as a catalyst to set the runes in." Marco said.

"Wait... So you're telling me that these runes here are written with your blood?" Janna asked, a wide grin on her face.

"Yeah! It's... Is that weird?" Marco asked.

"Nope!" Janna said, putting the cloak on, her grin never leaving her face.

"Well anyway, it's time for breakfast right? I'll make us some pancakes" Marco said, moving towards the pantry.

"Oh no you don't!" Kelly said, grabbing him by the collar of his shirt and dragging him out of the kitchen.

"Huh? But..." Marco began, but a look from Kelly shut him up.

"We'll take care of breakfast." Kelly said, her tone left no room for arguments.

"... Ok fine." Marco said, making his way upstairs, until he stopped as he remembered something very important.

"Staaaaar!" Marco called out.

"Yeeeees?" She said, her head popping out of kitchen, somehow she already managed to spill flour on her hair and face.

"Remember the kitchen rules we have at home? I expect you to follow it here too. I don't another pancake incident, okay?" Marco said.

"Okay! I'll leave my wand out here." She said, tossing her wand to the couch.

"Wow... She's actually listening to me" Marco said, smiling to himself as he made his way to his room.

"Ummm... Pancake incident?" Jackie asked, looking at Star with an amused look.

"Yeah... I kinda went overboard making pancakes one time, and I may or may not have accidentally on purpose made sentient pancake golems... Opps." Star said with a shrug.

"Hahahaha, I bet Marco had a fit trying to clean up after that." Jackie said with a laugh, wiping away a tear.

"Oh yeah he hated it, it turns out the only thing he hates more than wet socks is having socks drenched in syrup." Star said, tapping her chin in thought.

"Not true, there's something else he hates even more." Janna said.

"Huh? What is it?" Star asked.

"Exploding tree mites?" Kelly suggested.

"No idea what that is" Janna said.

"Oh, they're like watermelon sized mites the suck the sap out of trees... Sometimes they explode, for like, no reason at all." Kelly said.

"Eww... gross, who wouldn't hate that?" Jackie said.

"Literally everybody would hate that. But the thing that he really hates is... Centipedes." Janna said.

"What... Really?" Star asked, this was news to her.

"Yup, apparently when he was out camping as a kid, one crawled into his shirt, it made him run around panicking like a headless chicken, eventually he knocked himself out running into a tree, he's hated them ever since." Janna said, laughing at the memory.

"That is both fascinating and terrifying to imagine." Kelly said, with Star and Jackie nodding in agreement.

"Well anyway, let's get back to cooking, Marco should be coming back down in a few minutes." Star said.

Meanwhile, Marco had just finished putting on his hoodie, his hair was still dripping wet, that tends to happen when one takes a shower.

"Okay so they'll be joining the guild today... Hmmm" Marco said aloud, checking his phone as he did so.

"Maybe it's a little too early for them..." Marco said, sitting on the bed as he mulled the thought over.

And just then he heard a loud reverberating crash from downstairs. He was about to rush down to see what happened, until he heard their laughter shortly after.

 _" Sigh..._ Well, they can handle a guild, I'm sure of it. Not like I'll be able to change their minds anyway." Marco said, a small and content smile on his face as he shook his head.

He was about to go back downstairs til he saw his dimensional scissors on his bedside desk.

"Oh yeah, I go check up on that first..." He said, grabbing the scissors and snipping open a portal.

Walking out of the portal he was met with two spears aimed at his face.

"It's just me guys..." Marco said raising his hands in a placating manner, he'd already gotten used to having the guards hold him a spear point, though he wasn't sure whether or not that was a good thing.

"Is Queen Moon available right now?" He asked them as they lowered their spears.

"Yes, her majesty is in the throne room at the moment." One of them answered.

"Thank you." Marco said, nodding his head in thanks before making his way to the throne room.

~~~~~~~~~~

Moon was indeed in the throne room, and although she didn't have to listen to the citizens' complaints today nor did she have any diplomatic meetings, she still had a headache, the band of brigands that had tried to kidnap her daughter and her friends yesterday were still not apprehended, and Rhombulus was bugging her about something.

 _'Indeed, what happened was horrible, but we have no lead Rhomby._ She thought to herself.

However, a knock at the door managed to shake her out of her thoughts.

"Oh, now who might that be?" Moon said, motioning to the two guards to open the door.

And to her surprise Marco had entered the room.

"Uh... Pardon me Queen Moon." Marco said, bowing at the waist.

"Its alright Marco, do you need something from me?" She asked.

"I just wanted to know how the hunt for the gang is going, if it's not too much trouble." Marco said.

"No trouble at all my boy, but unfortunately we haven't made much progress as of yet, if only River were here, he'd be able to sniff them out." Moon said.

 _'Did_ _she mean that literally or figuratively?'_ Marco wondered.

"Oh, well I may be able to help, your majesty." Marco said, pulling out a folded piece of paper from his hoodie pocket and handing it over to the Queen.

"What is this? A map?" The Queen asked, looking over what Marco had given her.

"Yes, they're in one of those places, although I'm not entirely sure which one, it seems that they switch bases almost daily in order to not be found." Marco said.

"If that's so, then the best thing to do is to assault all four places at once." Moon said.

"But, how did you manage to get this information? I was informed that the captured members were under a blood oath." Moon said.

"Am I right to assume that you got this from some outside source?" She added.

"Well I have my ways Queen Moon, you don't just spend sixteen years chasing after Hpoo and not learn anything, after all" Marco said with a rather confident grin, spinning his scissors around his finger.

 _'That and they can't exactly abide by a blood oath without any blood in them._ Marco thought to himself.

"And I apologize Queen Moon but I have to go back, if I don't Star might set the kitchen on fire." Marco said, excusing himself as he hopped through a portal.

"Well, he's surprisingly a lot more resourceful than I thought." Moon said, looking over the marked spots on the map again.

"Wait... Who's _Hpoo?_ Moon questioned, recalling what the boy had said.

~~~~~~~~~~

Surprisingly the kitchen wasn't on fire, at least not that Marco can see, he did however notice a faint smell of smoke lingering in the air.

"Huh... I gotta, I'm surprised, I really thought that the kitchen would've been on fire." Marco said, sitting down by the table.

"Puuuhhh-lease, we're not that destructive" Star said, juggling the wand in her hand.

"Well then I'm impressed." Marco said.

"Well of cou..."Star began.

"... That you guys managed to put it out before I got down here." Marco said, interrupting Star.

At that everyone but Star and Marco did a spit take.

"Oh come on! How'd you know?" Janna asked, slamming her glass on the table.

"Dang it. I knew it wasn't enough." Kelly said, pouting.

"Wow, you're good." Jackie said, impressed at Marco's perception.

"Ugh... What gave it away?" Star asked, her hand hanging down in defeat.

"Nothing. You guys gave it away just now." Marco said, trying (and failing) to hold in his laughter.

"Ugh! That's not fair Marco." Star said, glaring at the boy.

"Yeah yeah, okay I'm sorry." Marco said, still snickering a bit

~~~~~~~~~

"Okay, I like the style, but is this really necessary?" Star asked, looking over her new adventuring attire.

They had all finished breakfast about an hour ago, now everyone but Marco was in Kelly's room, decked out new outfits.

"Yes, and besides they look awesome!" Kelly said, wearing the same equipment as yesterday, plus a couple of light metal spaulders covering her shoulders.

"Yeah, I gotta admit they're cool, and it's petty easy to move in them." Jackie said, who was geared similarly to Kelly, but minus the red scarf.

"... Seriously, do I really have to contribute to rpg stereotypes?" Janna asked, who was wear a black, long-sleeved knee length dress that seemed to go great with her cloak.

"Oh, come on Janna banana, you have to admit we look great!" Star said, wearing a blue leather vest on top of a white shirt accompanied by her hooded cloak, and the armored skirt and boots she once wore during the football game incident.

"Yeah we do! And come on. You guys haven't seen Marco in his gear yet." Kelly said.

" _Psssh_ , I bet that dork just upgraded his hoodie or something." Janna said, following Kelly out.

"... You'd be surprised actually." Kelly said, a small blush on her face.

And surprised they were.

Coming down the steps as a group they all saw Marco fussing over a small satchel with its contents scattered across the table.

And as they looked over his attire their jaws(minus Kelly's) slowly hung open.

From the bottom he was wearing tall brown boots and black pants, and he was wearing a gray shirt, and on top of that a red leather vest and topped off with a black, hooded long-sleeved, cloak. It was a look he, surprisingly, pulled off well.

"Woah..." Jackie said, looking over the boy. He looked... Pretty good, especially from the angle she was looking at, with his hair half covering his eyes, as his face holding a look of total concentration as he triple checked the contents of his satchel.

"Girl... You're drooling." Janna said, snapping Jackie out of her thoughts.

"What??" Jackie exclaimed, wiping away at her mouth.

"Ugh... No I wasn't." She said, glaring at her friend.

"Well you were about too." Janna teased, a wide grin on her face.

"Well come on, we can't just stare at his face for half an hour again" Janna said, walking over to Marco.

"Heyya Marco, whacha doing?" Janna asked, leaning on his shoulder as she got closer.

"Just checking my stuff." Marco said, packing up the satchel and placing it somewhere under his cloak.

"Huh? Where'd you hide that little bag?" Janna asked.

"Oh, there's a strap for it on my lower back, makes it easier to move like that." He said.

"Wow, I can't even tell that it's there." Janna said, looking at Marco's back.

"Also this covers your butt. I kinda hate it already." she added.

"Oh get out of town Janna." Marco said.

"And besides, this cloak makes it easy to hide stuff." Marco said.

"Oh, what do you have in there right now?" Jackie asked.

"Lets see... Hmmm.. I should have two smoke bombs, five regular bombs, four storage scrolls, a bunch of throwing knives, a grappling hook, some recovery potions, and a potato... For some reason." Marco said as he took out the respective items as he named them.

"Oh, and this sword too, I guess." Marco said, taking out a short sword from beside the table.

"Wait, didn't Kelly give you a sword?" Star asked.

"Yeah, but it's a little too big to just be carrying around, so I'm holding on to it until he needs it." Kelly said, taking the sword from her hair to show them.

"Okay then... so we've got everything we need right? Let's go then." Marco said, opening up a portal.

"By the way, we're gonna have to stop by the Gilded Garden" Marco said, an annoyed look plastered all over his face.

"What's that?" Jackie asked,

"It's the guild here." Marco said.

"Okay... And why do we gotta stop by there?" Janna asked.

"Did you start another fight?" Kelly asked, an amused look on her face.

"Ghhh, No I didn't!" Marco said, as a blush began creeping unto his face.

"Start a fight? Marco? Psssh... No way... Right?" Star, Janna and Jackie all said at the same time, a look of uncertainty all over their faces.

"Oh, you guys have no idea, Marco here keeps getting into a fight everyda..." Kelly began, however Marco covered her mouth with his hand and began dragging her towards the portal.

"Ok, let's save that for later. Or better yet, never." Marco said as he pushed Kelly through the portal.

"Let's go." He said, walking through the portal and ignoring the questioning looks the girls were giving him.

They walked out of the portal and arrived in front of a building that looked, oddly enough, like a huge warehouse made of wood and stone.

Pushing through the oaken doors they were greeted by the sounds of laughter and shouts, it seems that the guild was celebrating something.

And although at first they didn't notice, it seems that the guild was somehow bigger on the inside, this fact seemed to impress the gang.

There was an open space just above the reception desk and the bar, giving them a full view of the roof and a partial view of the second floor.

"Okay, wait here, I'm gonna go to the receptionist and see where we'll have to go." Marco said, walking towards the red haired woman behind the desk.

"Hmmm, what do you guys think we're here for?" Janna asked, rubbing her chin in thought.

"I dunno, they usually only call for private meetings when something serious happens, so I doubt it's cause of Marco picking a fight." Kelly said with a shrug.

"Okay, there's just no way Marco goes around picking fights... That's like saying Janna won't steal something from Marco for a whole month." Jackie said.

"... No offense girl." She added.

"None taken, that's a compliment to me." Janna said with a chuckle.

"Well yeah... But he doesn't fight just cause, it's always to help someone or to teach jerks a lessons." Kelly said.

"Like one time, a group of adventurers had a bit too much to drink and they were harassing that receptionist over there" Kelly said, gesturing to the woman Marco was talking to.

"And what'd Marco do?" Star asked.

"Heh... He set them on fire..." Kelly said, laughing a little at the memory.

Star and Jackie however had horrified looks on their faces.

Janna just looked impressed.

"Relax, they're alive, and besides Marco didn't do it in purpose. He just roughed them up and somehow he spilled beer on them... one of them was a wizard with an affinity for fire, you guys can guess what happened next." Kelly said.

And as she finished her little story Marco walked back to them.

"Hey guys... Ugh... What were you all talking about?" Marco asked.

"Oh, I was telling them about the time you set those adventurers on fire." Kelly said nonchalantly.

"Wha? Well they deserved it. I'm not gonna apologize for what I did." Marco said, crossing his arms.

"No no, not that, the other time." Kelly said.

"Oh... Then that was just an accident." Marco said.

"Wait... You set two different groups of people on fire?" Janna asked, she was practically shaking with excitement as she asked.

"Anyway we're supposed to go this way. Follow me." Marco said as he turned around and walked, completely ignoring Janna's question.

They walked towards the back of the guild, where a hallway lead even deeper into the guild, the hallway was dotted by large doors, most of which were locked.

"These rooms are used for storage" Marco said, gesturing to some of the doors.

"And these ones are for meetings and private discussions between members." Marco said, pointing to the more elaborately designed doors.

Eventually they reached the end of the hallway where two large silver doors stood in front of them.

"Well... This is the place." Marco said, walking into the room.

Inside was a long table with twelve seats on either side of it.

Three seats were already occupied on one side of the table.

One seat was taken by a portly looking old man but despite his age his black hair had no traces of silver in it, he was dressed in loose clothing, but despite his looks he still intimidated Marco, mostly because he had a massive warhammer strapped to his back like it was nothing.

Next to him was a much younger blonde man, he was fully armored, decked in a set of heavy plate armor, his helmet, which, along with his other armor, was studded with various gems. He had a smug and condescending look on him as he looked at the group enter the room.

The last seat was taken by a beautiful brown haired woman, she was only lightly armored, however the lion sigil on her shield meant that she was part of the royal guard of the kingdom governing the place.

"Well met" The old man said smilingly, standing up as he greeted them.

"Glad you could meet us Marco, my name is Devon, Guild Master of the Gilded Garden." He said, nodding his head at them

"And I, am simply called Vax. Captain of the Royal guards of the Kingdom of Highmane." She said, placing her hand on her chest as she did a small bow.

"You know who I am. Diaz." The blonde man said as he glared at him, practically spitting out Marco's name.

In return Marco just glared at him.

"It's a pleasure to finally make your acquaintance Guild Master Devon and to you as well Captain Vax." Marco said, nodding at them.

"Lars." Marco added, glaring at the man.

"My name's Marco, and these are my friends" Marco said, gesturing towards the girls behind him.

"I'm Kelly, I've gone questing with Marco before, so you've probably seen me around I guess..." Kelly said with a shrug.

"I'm Star! And I've been adventuring with Marco for like, a long time now, but I haven't really been questing yet." Star said, as she did a small curtsy.

"Well I'm Janna" Janna said simply, as she eyed the gems on Lar's armor.

"And I'm Jackie, we've been friends with Marco since we were kids, but we're fairly new to adventuring." She said, copying Vax' bow.

"And sorry if I'm being blunt here, but why'd you call for us?" Marco said.

"Please, sit down, and we'll discuss it, we won't take too much of your time." Devon said, gesturing to the seats I front of them.

Lars' eyes seemed to follow Jackie as she sat beside Marco. A fact that Marco took notice of.

"Okay, now... What's the problem?" Marco said as they sat down, glaring at Lars, seemingly directing the question at him.

But before Lars could spit out an answer Devon spoke up:

"It's about what you said yesterday." He started.

"You said you and your friends took down an earth elemental..." He said, sweeping his gaze at Marco's group.

"And what's your point?" Marco said, his voice gaining a slight edge to it as Devon looked over his friends.

"Nothing... It's just that... That was a disaster class monster, the King was about to send a platoon of soldiers and Lars' groups to deal with it." He said uneasily.

"And as your companions said, they don't seem to be that experienced with adventuring." Devon said.

"Oh for the love of... What he's trying to say is that weaklings like you and your lot couldn't have killed that elemental. I don't know what you did or how, but there's no way you could have handled it in your own." Lars said interrupting Devon as he slammed his hands onto the table and stood up.

"Again. What are you trying to say?" Marco asked, his voice oddly calm, despite the situation.

"What we're trying to say is that you need to hand over the it's core to us." Lars said, a wide grin plastered on his smug face.

"WHAT??!" Kelly yelled, also standing up.

"That's not fair we killed it fair and square! And you can't say that you had rights to its loot cause we didn't take a quest for it! We just happened to find it by chance!" Kelly said.

" _Sigh_... She's right Lars, I told you this is what would've happened." Devon said, shaking his head and letting out a tired sigh.

"Damn it. And what do you have to say about this??" He growled, looking at Vax.

"Just this; was it true that you defeated it near the Everdew fields?" She asked.

"Yes." Marco said simply.

"Then you have my deepest thanks. That is near the village I grew up in, if you had not dealt with it then I fear what could have happened. But since you did defeat it then I have nothing but gratitude towards you all." She said, bowing deeply to them.

They were all surprised at this.

"So that's why you wanted to be a part of this." Devon said, chuckling a little.

"So... If that's all then we'll take our leave." Marco said, beginning to get up.

"No!" Lars said, slamming his fist down the table.

"I've have had enough of you! I demand, in the name of this guild, that you hand over its core!" Lars said.

At that statement Devon's eyes went wide. But before he could protest Marco spoke up:

"Oh so you want to drag our guilds into this huh?" Marco said, bringing out his dimensional scissors stabbing it on the table, digging it half an inch into the wood.

And upon seeing the glimmer of the blades Lars and Devon were visibly shook.

Vax simply raised a brow at the boy's action.

"Damn you. Hiding behind your Guild Master." He said, all the bravado from earlier, seemingly gone.

And at that statement Vax's eyes went wide, and she looked at Marco as if it was the first time she had ever saw him.

" _Hmpf..._ If that's all then we will take our leave." Marco said.

And just as they were about to walk out the room, Lars said:

"I challenge you to a duel." He said quietly.

"Hah, like you'd have something if ever want." Marco said, not even looking back.

"Really? Or are you just scared to lose? I bet you whatever it is you want from me. In return I want that wench with the blue streak in her hair." He said.

"What the hell did you just call Jackie?" Janna said, turning around and glaring at Lars her fists glowing an eerie shade of green.

Star and Kelly shared in her anger.

However, Jackie just looked indifferent, albeit a little sad.

"It's okay, let's just drop it guys." Jackie said, rubbing her arm in shame.

Throughout all of this, Marco still had his back turned to them.

"You can't have Jackie or anyone else. You can do whatever you want to me if you win. But you can't touch them." Marco said, turning around to face him.

"Outside. Now." He stated.

And with that, he walked out.

"You pissed him off." Kelly said quietly, looking at the doorway.

"You should never piss him off." Kelly said aloud, following Marco and the others out.

"Finally." Lars said with a crazed grin on his face as he gripped the handle of his sword.

"This isn't gonna end well." Devon said as Lars walked out.

"I have 20 gold pieces on the boy" Vax said.

"I'm not stupid you know." Devon answered.

"But I do know some gullible adventurers in my guild" He said, flashing her a grin.

"Well, you both know the drill, no killing and no collateral damage." Devon said, a huge crowd had already gathered around the two who were about to fight.

"Let's just cut to the chase already." Lars said impatiently.

"Fine. You may begin" Devon said.

And as he said that, Lars began charging in recklessly, his sword drawn and ready to seek blood.

He struck like a charging bull, pure power and strength.

Marco struck like viper; fast, precise and deadly.

The crowd didn't even get a chance to cheer. One second the boy was standing there waiting to be impaled by Lars, the next second, Lars was on the ground with a knife aimed at his throat.

"Yield." Marco said, digging the blade into Lars' throat, drawing a thin line of blood.

"I... I yield." He said reluctantly.

"I'll take my prize later." Marco said as he stood up.

"And I'll be sure to send you half the core later." Marco said, looking Devon and Vax.

"But right now, we have to go somewhere." Marco said, snipping open a portal.

But, as he was in the middle of that Lars jumped at him from behind, his sword drawn and his face contorted to a look of seething hatred.

~~~~~~~~~

One blinding iridescent flash of light later, Marco had turned around with his sword half drawn, only to see that Lars had been blasted across the street and into the wall.

His armor had a dented line in the center and his sword lay by his side, cleanly cut in half. He himself was worse off, his right hand was frozen to the wall and his left hand was wrapped by a multitude of snakes and his face was covered in cuts and burns, there was also several crystal heart shaped daggers stuck in his armor.

Looking to his left he saw Janna, Jackie, and Star glaring at Lars, and to his right he saw Kelly with her sword drawn. And they all had a look of absolute anger on their faces.

' _Note to self: Never. Ever. Make them angry'_ Marco thought to himself.

"Okay let's go now." Marco said, trying to force them through the portal.

And they only reluctantly agreed because Vax promised to deal with Lars for them. Stating that she was the captain of the royal guard after all.

"Okay, how about we register you guys and then go on a picnic for lunch?" Marco said.

And they only nodded, it seems that they couldn't quite look at Marco at the moment.

" _Sigh_... Okay, let's go." Marco said, leading them through a building that looked similar to the Gilded Garden except that the sign above the door was white rose stained with blood.

And when they went inside they weren't greeted by laughter or cheers, instead they got an unnaturally silent yet very similar place to the Gilded Garden.

Then all at once the whole place erupted in cheers and yells.

And a chorus of 'Kelly's back!' was heard throughout the guild.

And a few 'And she brought her boyfriend too' was present, but those didn't reach their ears.

"Hehe, hey guys." Kelly said with a smile.

A tall buff man with a wild hairdo walked up to them, a huge smile plastered on his face.

"Kelly!" He said, bumping fists with the girl as he reached them.

"Heyya Frank." Kelly greeted him.

"Is auntie Elizabeth here?" She asked.

"Oh, bad luck, she just went out on a quest." He said.

"But, Guild Leader Sam is here, you guys wanna see her?" He asked.

"Yes! That's perfect. Thanks Frank." She said as she lead the way.

"So... How's this gonna work?" Jackie asked as she followed Kelly, the people around them greeting them as they passed.

"Oh, you'll be filling up some paperworks and you'll give a drop of your blood and then you'll get a guild card, it's pretty simple actually." Kelly explained.

"Guild card?" Janna asked.

"Oh, it has your picture and some data, it also serves as identification card, in case you... You know.. Die." Kelly said.

And oddly enough they were fazed by it at all. With Jackie just saying a simple "huh..."

"Oh! You mean like this?" Janna said, taking out a deep black card webbed with orange and red cracks.

"Janna!" Marco yelled.

"Give that back!" He said, reaching for the card.

"Nooope!" Janna said, making the card float in the air.

At this everyone, including random people around them snickered.

"Uuugggh! Fine. Keep it." Marco said, storming off ahead of them.

He was already standing by the double doors when they caught up to him.

"Here you go Marco." Janna said, tossing the card back to him, but he just pocketed it and kept on pouting.

"Whatever..." He said.

And just as they were about to enter the room, the doors swung open and someone grabbed onto Kelly.

It was a woman with beautiful green hair, she was dressed in an outfit that mirrored Kelly and Jackie's however she also had a small crown of red vines on her head.

"Hey there, auntie Samantha, nice to see you too." Kelly said, returning the hug.

"Awww, I missed you Kelly. Please just stay here forever and ever." She said.

"You know I can't do that right?" Kelly answered, laughing at her antics.

Star couldn't help but feel happy looking at them, it reminded her so much of how the Johansens treated her.

"Well, what can I do for you?" Sam said smilingly as she pulled away from the hug.

"Well, I wanted to have my friends here register" Kelly said, gesturing to Jackie and Janna and Star who waved at her.

"Oh, of course! Follow me. Oh ho.. And it seems you brought Marco with you." She said as she finally saw Marco.

"Still delightfully roguish I see." she said, grinning at the boy

"For the last time. I'm not a rogue." Marco said.

"Right right. And Kelly's **not** your girlfriend." She said, laughing at her own joke.

"Aunt Saaaaaaam!" Kelly said, hiding in her hair.

"Oh my... Sorry sorry. I've let my mouth run." She said.

"Now, follow me in doves." She said gesturing them to come in.

"Upuhpuh. Not you." She said, holding a hand in front of Marco.

"Wha? Whhyyy?" He asked.

"Oh relax. I'm not gonna eat them. Just wait out or something." She said.

"sigh... Fine. I'm going to go cook lunch, I'll be backed ok?" He said as he left.

~~~~~~~~~

"... Are any of you girls dating him?" Sam asked the girls as he left through a portal.

To which they all answer but choking on nothing and violently coughing.

"What? I mean, how many guys do you come across that do what you tell them to without too much complaining? Plus he can cook!" She said when they all glared at her.

After just thirty minutes they already finished registration and were given their cards.

"See, I told ya it was easy." Kelly said, as they walked out of the room.

"These are so cool..." Star said, ogling the shiny silver card in her hand.

"And you said we could call each other with these?" Jackie asked.

"Yup, also the guild can call on us in case of emergency." Kelly said

"These are neat and all, but... Can we go and call Marco? I'm getting hungry." Janna said.

"Yeah, me too actually ." Jackie said.

And just then Kelly's mirror phone rang.

"Hey Kelly, if you and the others are done meet me by that tree outside of town." Marco said, ending the call as abruptly as he called.

"Huh... Well, guess we're going there then." Kelly said.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Well, they should be here in a few minutes" Marco said tucking away his phone, as he prepared the picnic blanket.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Hey Marco!" Star yelled, waving as he came into view.

He was currently sitting under a tree, his hands tucked under his head like a makeshift pillow, but he got up and walked to them when he heard Star yell.

"Hey, guys. Did you finish registrating?" He asked them.

"Yup." They said as they showed him their cards.

"Nice! Now it's picnic time." Marco said, opening up a portal and taking out a picnic basket.

~~~~~~~~

"Who knew bear meat could taste so good?" Jackie said, letting out a cute little burp.

"I know right!?" Star said in agreement.

"It's probably cause of Marco's cooking." Kelly said, lying down on the blanket.

"Yeah right. It was the same recipe your uncle Frederick thought me. I just let it marinate over night." Marco said as he rolled his eyes.

"But they were still so good!" Star said.

"Yeah, I gotta agree man. Never knew a bear cutlet sandwich could taste so good." Jackie said, following Kelly and lying on the blanket as well.

"I could use a nap now." Star said with a yawn..

"Look, Janna's already started." Star said, pointing at Janna's sleeping form, she had used her cloak as a blanket.

"You guys sleep. I'll keep watch of our stuff." Marco said, looking over their equipment that they neatly placed on the side.

And with that, they all gently napped under the shade of the tree.

"Yup, this is nice." Marco said as he sat under the tree, watching over his friends sleeping peacefully.

"I kinda wish it'd stay like this for a while, I need break from fighting" Marco said, recalling the events yesterday and at the other guild.

"Wait..."

"I just jinxed myself. Didn't I." He said with a frown.

~~~~~~~~~~~

 **Had to cut this short sorry, I'll upload the next as soon as I can. Bye for now.** **Also... *g note***


	16. Peace Talks: Goodnight Demon Slayer

**This is was a really fun little story I thought up a while ago, but I couldn't find the right moment to write and upload it. But here it is now. Enjoy.**

 **Peace Talks**

 **Goodnight Demon Slayer**

The girls were currently surrounding Marco, ogling at his sleeping face.

Anybody who saw them doing would've found it weird, maybe even a little creepy, anybody other than Janna that is; after all this isn't the first time she stared at Marco's sleeping face without him knowing. The only difference was, she wasn't alone this time, which, if Janna was being honest, was actually a very nice change of pace.

While she was looking at Marco's face, she couldn't help but let her thoughts drift, his sleeping face was oddly thought-provoking.

As she looked on, she just couldn't help but think.

 _'I wonder if anyone would look at me the same way we're all looking at this dork's sleeping face'_ She thought to herself as she placed her elbow on the table, resting her chin in her hand and continuing to stare at Marco.

And as she thought that, an old memory popped into her mind.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

~Flashback~

"Papa papa!" a much younger Janna chanted, jumping and down her bed, her messy hair bouncing up and down.

"Hahaha, yes sweetie?" A man said, his eyes was completely covered by his hair, but his smile was soft and gentle.

"Where's mama?" little Janna asked, still bouncing on the bed.

"She's putting your little sister to sleep, you know how fussy baby Emily is when it's bed time." He answered.

"Hmpf! Who she think she is? Emy can't just be fussy like that!" little Janna said, crossing her arms as she stopped bouncing on the bed.

"Oh? And look who's talking. Unless this means you don't want to hear the song anymore." He said.

"Nuuuu!" little Janna cried out, grabbing onto her dad's arm.

"Dear. What did I say about teasing our daughters?" a woman said, as she walked into the room and ran her fingers down her husband's neck.

"That... That I shouldn't do it." He shakily said, shivering at his wife's touch.

"Fufufu..." She she lightly laughed, biting her husband's ear as she did so.

 _"Gahh"_ He cried out.

"Hehe, see sweetie, this is how you control your man." She said, as she smiled at her daughter and pulled her in for a hug.

"Really?" little Janna asked, looking at her mom with bright eyes.

"Yes." She bluntly answered.

Meanwhile her husband wanted nothing more than to tell his daughter "No" but out of fear of his wife he reluctantly said nothing.

"Okay!" little Janna said, smiling widely at her mother.

"That's my girl!" Her mom said proudly, squeezing little Janna into another hug.

"Uhhh... But ummm.. maybe you don't try this yet... Okay Jann?" Her father said.

"But I already did." She said innocently, tilting her head to the side.

"Nyaaaaaww, that's girl!" Her mom said proudly, playfully squeezing little Janna's cheeks.

"... That poor boy." Her dad said, shaking his head.

"Poor boy? If I recall correctly, I did the same thing to you when we were younger." Janna's mom said.

"Exactly! I know just how he feels..." He said, not noticing the glare his wife was giving him.

"And what is **that** suppose to mean?" His wife asked, pinching her husband's ear.

"Ow ow ow! I'm sorry! I didn't mean anything by it" He said, crying a little.

Meanwhile little Janna just laughed at them.

"... Papa?" Janna asked, her smiling turning onto a saddened expression.

"What is it sweetie?" Her father asked, concern written all over his face.

"Are... Are you gonna leave again?" She asked meekly.

"I'm sorry sweetie, but papa has to, they discovered a new ruin in the Amazon and they need me there, but mama will be with you, so don't worry okay? I'll be back as soon as I can." He said, hugging his daughter.

"Okay... Will you bring me back present?" Janna asked.

"Yes of course! I'll bring you back a skull!" He said excitedly.

"A skull? Are you serious?" His wife scolded him.

"Make it at least two. That's the least you could do." She added.

"Ah, yes of course, what was I thinking?" He said, slapping his forehead lighty.

"..." little Janna was quiet.

"Dear? What is it?" Her dad asked.

"I... I wanna... Can you to sing me?" She asked meekly, looking up at her parents with wide eyes.

"Awwww of course! Wait here." He said as he rushed out of the room.

" _Sigh..._ Papa sure is silly huh?" Her mom asked smiling at the doorway.

"Yes! He's really silly." little Janna said smiling up at her mother.

"Okay I'm back." He said, rushing back with a guitar and a violin in hand.

"Here you go darling" He said, handing the violin to his wife.

"Now, let's tuck you in little demon slayer" He said as he tucked her in.

"Ahem, okay... Hold on." He said, adjusting the tuning on his guitar.

 _There's a creature that lurks behind the door..."_ He sang, as he began strumming his guitar.

 _"Though I've checked there 15_ times, _When I leave then he arrives,_ _Every night"_

And at this his wife joined in, playing her violin as she softly sang along.

 _"Tell the monster that lives 'neath your bed_ _To go somewhere else_ _instead,_

 _Or you'll kick him in the head"_ At this little Janna giggled.

 _"Tell the creature that lurks behind the door If he knows what's good he won't come here anymore"_

 _"Cause you'll kick in his butt at the count of foooour!"_

"Yeah!" little Janna said, pumping her fist into the air.

 _"Goodnight demon slayer,_ _goodnight,_ _Now it's time to close your tired_ _eyes,_ _There are devils to slay and dragons to ride If they see you coming, hell they better_ _hide"_ He sang, ruffling little Janna's hair as he did.

 _"Goodnight, goodnight, goodnight_ _Goodnight my little slayer goodnight"_ At this both of Janna's parents dotted he r with kisses, placing one each time they said goodnight.

 _"Tell the monster that eats children, that you taste bad_

 _And you're sure you'd be the worst that he's ever had"_

"Bleghh" little Janna said, sticking her tongue out and pretending to puke.

 _"If he eats you, don't you fret, just cut him open with an axe_

 _Don't regret it, he deserved it, he's a cad_ he sang this with a grin on his face.

 _"Tell the harpies that land on your bed post_

 _That at the count of five you'll roast them alive"_

 _"Tell the devil its time you gave him his due_ _He should go back to hell, he should shake in his shoes_ _Cause the mightiest, scariest, creature is you!"_

"Me!" little Janna said, giggling a little before letting out a small yawn.

 _"Goodnight demon slayer, goodnight_

 _Now it's time to close your tired eyes_ _There are devils to slay and dragons to ride_

 _If they see you coming, hell they better hide"_

 _"Goodnight, goodnight, goodnight_ _Goodnight my little slayer goodnight"_ He sang, letting the sounds of his guitar slowly fade out.

Little Janna was fast asleep now. So they slowly made their way to the door.

But as they reached the door, they heard their daughter cry out:

"Wait..." She said.

"I wanna see your eyes papa." She said.

"Of course sweetie" He said with a smile, walking over to her and sitting on the bedside.

Sweeping the bangs covering his eyes he looked down on his daughter with his chocolate brown eyes, a soft smile on his face.

His wife sat on the other side of the bed and kissed little Janna once more.

"I love you guys..." She said, father's kind eyes the last thing she saw before she started drifting off to dreamland.

 _'Yeah, he really does have kind eyes like_ _papa_ ' she thought to herself, remembering the way his eyes sparkled with warmth.

And as she fell asleep, a soft mumble of _"Marco"_ escaped her lips...

~~~~~~~~~~

 _Yeah, that was such an awesome lullaby'_ she thought to herself, as she continued staring at Marco's face.

 _'Wait... Didn't Marco sing that...'_ she thought to herself.

 _'Yeah! When he helped me babysit Emily that one time'_ She recalled.

But before she could reminisce she noticed Marco began to stir in his sleep, the others however didn't.

So she silently ushered them away, much to their confusion.

To them Marco didn't look any different, but to someone who's been watching his sleeping face without him knowing for as long as she had knew different.

They were almost in the clear, but when Star noticed Marco waking up, she yelled:

"MORNING MARCO"

Startling Marco out of his seat and onto the floor.

 _'And we're busted... What the heck was Star thinking? Maybe that was just like a muscle memory on her end'_ Janna thought to herself as they all avoided looking at Marco directly

~~~~~~~~~~

 **Hey guys, thank you for your kind words, maybe it is true I'm being a little hard on myself but nonetheless thank you. I'll you all next time! Byebye.**

 **Song is goodnight demon slayer. Btw.**


	17. Blood Rose 2

**Takes place immediately after the first** **part... So yeah.**

 **Chapter 9**

 **Blood Rose Guild** **2**

It had been five minutes since Marco supposedly jinxed himself, and so far nothing has happened.

"Oh that's a relief, I really thought I jinxed us there..." He said, letting out a sigh of relief.

Only to be startled by a loud insistent ringing noise emanating from his pocket, echoed by similar noises coming from the girls' sleeping forms.

"What the heck!?" He said, reaching for whatever was making so much noise.

And as he struggled to find the object of his search, the noise was beginning to stir the girls awake.

"Wha? Whaz goin' on?" Kelly and Star both said at the same time, a line of drool trailing down the side of Star's face.

"Why is my card ringing?" Jackie asked, squinting at her card.

"Ugh! It has an alarm clock? How to do I stop it?" Janna asked.

"... It's a distress call." Marco said, looking at his card.

"We need to go. Now." He said, opening up a portal and tossing the picnic blacket through, before opening up another one and motioning for everyone to follow through.

What awaited them on the other side was a town, some of the buildings were on fire and others were simply demolished.

And the culprit for this destruction was ahead of them, confronted by seven people desperately trying to keep it focused on them and not destroying anymore of the town.

The massive bronze scaled beast, towered over the surrounding houses and buildings, smoke was billowing from one of its heads, it swept its five sets of draconic eyes over the group, scanning its nearby prey.

Annoyed, at group that was keeping it from devouring the easy prey all around it, it's five throats let out a subsonic growl which shook the earth, right before it reared all five of its massive heads and let loose a deafening roar, the sound amplified by its multiple heads.

"Okay... That's gonna be a problem, we need to try and group up with whoever called us here." Marco said, staring up at the beast.

However Star and Janna ran ahead of them, blasting spells at the beast.

"Dang it! I'm am so gonna have to talk to them about this later." Marco said, following after them, with Kelly and Jackie right behind him.

"Jackie, this is the first time you've see a hydra, and the last I hope, but what you need to know is to stay well away from the heads, each head can have different types of powerful breath attacks, the tail might look heavy but it's fast as a whip, it has no wings but it's fast on its four legs, the heads regenerate, and generally just stay as far away as possible don't dive in unless you have a clear opening. Kelly, you know what to do." Marco said as they ran.

"Yeah, okay." Jackie shakily said, she was absolutely terrified looking at draconic beast in front of her, but a wide grin was on her face, she only even felt this much excitement whenever she tried a new extreme sport.

"Marco, here." Kelly said, tossing Marco's greatsword to him.

"Thanks." Marco said as he caught it.

"... No mourners." He added, his face grim.

"No funerals." Kelly replied, looking forward, a determined look on her face.

"It's for luck." Marco said when he noticed Jackie's confused expression.

"Oh... Then... no funerals." She said a little awkwardly.

"Lets go." Marco said.

"Star! Get over here." Marco yelled.

"What? I'm a little busy Marco!" Star said, stopping her barrage of narwhals and cupcake blasts as she looked at him.

"Marco?" A few voices echoed.

"Marco?" A woman wear a slightly revealing crop top, a long skirt and donning a long billowing cape said as she saw him. She was standing beside a large wolf and a spider the size of a large dog. Elizabeth the summoner.

"Kid! What the heck are you doing here?" A man who was dressed like a battle monk who held a wooden staff etched with glowing runes, and with bandages covering his hands asked him. Fredrik the Battle Wizard.

"Ha! I knew ya'd be coming 'ere" A dark skinned man who was half a head shorter than Marco but made up for it with his war hammer, impressive beard and muscle mass. Mostly his impressive beard though. Brann the Dwarven Vanguard.

"Oh? It's been a while buddy, would you mind lending us a hand here?" An elegantly tall yet lanky framed man with pointy ears asked him, his twin recurve swords shining in the sunlight. Percival the Half-Elf Ranger.

"Oh is that Marco? How you doing there love? Is Kelly with ya?" A girl asked, though Marco wasn't able to distinguish where it came from. This was Keyleth the Gunslinger.

"Marco? Is he the one who... *mumble*" A smaller feminine voice was saying, but was cut off somehow, like someone covered her mouth. Marco didn't know who this was.

"Marco!! I see you've come for glory as well." An incredibly tall, gray skinned man who's upper body was covered in tattoo like markings and nothing else, luckily he was wearing wolf pelt pants and not completely naked, he held a battle axe which was as tall as him. Grog the Berserker.

"Ummm hey guys." Marco said sheepishly.

"Uhhh, Kelly, it's them." Marco said, turning to look at his friend.

"What're you tal... Oh... Hi aunt Elizabeth, uncle Fredrik." Kelly said with a smile, waving at them.

"Kelly's here too?" They asked.

" _sigh.._ Can we talk later, we kinda have a hydra on our hands here." Marco said when he saw them about to ask more questions.

"Star, come here for a bit, they'll hold off the hydra for us." Marco said, gesturing to Star to come over.

"What is it Marco?" Star asked, a little annoyed that her blasting was interrupted.

"Star, listen. We need to focus on trying to find any survivors, usually people are evacuated immediately during times like this but there's almost **always** people left behind. I need you to try and find if there are people in the buildings." Marco told her.

At this, Star's annoyed expression gave way to a look of terror then very quickly into one of determination.

"Okay, but I'm gonna need to focus for a bit okay." She told Marco.

"Don't worry, I've got you" Marco said, looking at her with a soft smile before standing in between her and the hydra, taking a defensive stance with the greatsword.

With a slight blush on her face from seeing that stupid smile, Star began to focus on spreading a pulse of magic around her, which passed through the rubble of the wrecked buildings.

"A magic sonar? Not bad Star" Marco complimented her, looking on at fight in front of him.

Each of the hydra's head were being fended off by two people each.

Janna was with Grog, who kept charging in with his massive axe. Normally this would not be ideal, however Janna complimenting his reckless attacks by distracting the head with blinding and explosive spells.

Brann and Percival were working like clockwork. Percival would dance around slicing the hydra's head and dodging the claws while Brann would cover his flank whenever a bite or swipe would threaten his friend.

Kelly's aunt Elizabeth and uncle Fredrik were dealing with one head together, Elizabeth would empower the wolf with magic, surrounding it in flames as it shot like a bullet tear a chunk off one of the hydra's neck. If the head would retaliate with a bite, the spider would shoot off a thread of web that would cover the mouth. And if it tried to swipe at Elizabeth, Fredrik would deflect it with an empowered strike from his staff.

Another head was being peppered by bullets, both physical and magical, that were coming from the top of one of the buildings.

And the last head was being dealt with by both Kelly and Jackie, who, much to Marco's surprise were working really well together. Jackie's light attacks and quick maneuvers would distract the head long enough for Kelly to land devastating heavy blows with her greatsword.

Everything was going well, surprisingly. Until it went a little too well and Grog got excited, and with a heave and a bellowing roar, he cut off one the heads with an upward slice, splattering blood across his face.

"Haha! The first head is mine!" He triumphantly yelled.

Only to be knocked airborne by the hydra, it's tail whipping around the beast to knock Grog skyward.

"Gorg!" They all echoed.

He was just a point of light in the sky now. But they had bigger problems. Namely the fact that two heads had sprouted from the once empty neck.

"Oh shi-" Janna began.

"Language Janna!" Marco interrupted her with a small frown across his face, as he took something from within his cloak and tossing it towards the two recently sprouted heads.

And with a small _click,_ it exploded, the small bomb took its attention away from Janna and onto Marco.

"Well... I got its attention. Now what Diaz?" He asked himself, as two of squirming and flailing heads focused on him. He wanted nothing more than to bolt in the opposite direction, but he couldn't do that. Especially since he knew he could actually be of some help.

"To whom much is given, much is required." He chanted to himself, readying the shield bracer and the sword in his hands.

The two heads rushed towards him, aiming to tackle him rather than bite.

It was easy to block with the shield, but they kept pushing him back. Pushing him towards Star.

"Oh no you don't." He said as he dissipated the shield, quickly tossing another bomb into one of its open maws and dropping his body to the ground he kicked its mouth shut, knocking the hydra head up as brought the shield to life again covering himself from the resulting explosion.

The explosion dazed the head, but the other one was unaffected, and it was making its way to Star.

"Didn't I **just** tell you not to!?" Marco yelled, stabbing his sword into its neck.

Recoiling from the pain, the head focused this gaze towards the boy.

"Uh oh..." Marco said. And uh oh was right. He was in too awkward a position to properly block a hit with his shield.

But he didn't need to worry about that, as a blast of green magic hit it.

"Sorry I'm late." Janna said, running to Marco side.

"I had to go around all the other heads." She added.

"Nah, you're just in time." Marco said, pulling the sword out of the hydra's neck.

"Think you can get us between this thing and Star?" Marco asked.

"Sure thing." Janna said, immediately blasting the ground as she grabbed Marco, launching them up and over the dazed heads. Star had used a similar spell to this once, but Marco was pretty sure it didn't involve the use of skulls and shadowy hearts.

They landed mostly on their feet, with Marco needing to help balance Janna so she wouldn't have faceplanted.

"You need more control... But not bad troublemaker." Marco told her, returning his attention to the now focused and angered heads.

"One on one with a hydra head each... This'll be hard." Marco said, getting into a stance.

"We can handle this, easy." Janna said confidently.

"Overconfidence is a slow and insidious killer." Marco and Fredrik lectured her at the same time. With Fredrik having to shout out.

"Whatever." Janna said as she rolled her eyes.

And at that she blasted away at the nearer of the two heads.

And all of a sudden a point of light in sky began to shine for a moment before an indistinguishable sound was heard.

"What the?" Marco said, looking at the sky for a split second before needing to parry a bite from a head.

And then they saw it.

Grog was crashing down from the sky, his axe raised above his head, prepared to bring it down on the beast.

A deafening war cry made the center head of the hydra look up.

"GRRRRRRRRRRROOOOOOOOOGGGGGG SMASH!" Grog yelled, falling like an angry meteor sent by spiteful god as he brought his axe down on the center head, splitting it clean down the middle as bone, brain matter, and blood all gave way at the massive cleaving strike.

A cloud of smoke and dust exploded as Grog crashed down, creating a small crater, the force of which, plus the decimation of the head made the hydra stumble backwards.

And as the smoke cleared, and the dust settled, they all saw Grog, hunching over as he breathed heavily, both his eyes closed for some reason, and a pink bubble encasing his entire form, seemingly breaking his fall.

" _Pheeew..._ That. Was a close one, big guy." Star said as she wiped her brow, her wand pointed at Grog.

"Ummm... Am I dead yet?" Grog uneasily asked, both his eyes still closed.

"No Grog. You're alive." Marco said casually, letting out a sigh of relief.

"Oh yeah. Marco, you were right. There're two people over there" Star said, pointing to a building behind the hydra, on the far left, with a part of its wall collapsed.

"Okay, well that's gonna be priority one. Luckily the hydra seems to be down." Marco said.

And as he said that another ear splitting roar cut through the air.

"I have **got** to stop jinxing myself." Marco said.

Rising up from the dust cloud with an angry growl, two of the hydra's heads bit into the flaps of meat, of what was once the center head, and with a quick wrenching motion, it tore the decimated head apart, and two more heads took its place.

Now with seven heads the hydra stood to its full height, shadowing the adventurers with its size. It swept its gaze across the group, looking at them with eyes of malice and venomous hatred. It reared it's seven heads back, it's chest expanding outwards and smoke began to billow from each of the seven heads.

At the sight of this, Marco nearly spat out a curse, but he held it back.

"Star, Janna behind me. Now." Marco said as grabbed them both and yanked them behind him.

"Fredrik!" Marco yelled out.

"I know! I KNOW!" He yelled back, the runes on his staff glowing a mix of blues and reds.

"Star, Janna, Jackie put up your shields!" Marco yelled as he began focusing on the bracer, willing the shield to life, bringing up the half dome of light in front of him and the girls.

Star and Janna also summoned up a forcefield, a mix of green and pink in color, adding on to their defense.

Jackie had also brought one up around her and Kelly

"Wait, what about them?" Star asked, looking at the others.

"Don't worry, Fredrik's got it" Marco said with a smirk.

And just then, Fredrik brought his staff down, slamming one end of the magical focus hard into the ground.

 **"Defendarius!"** Fredrik yelled, and just as the staff made contact with the ground, the Runes burst with blinding white light, and blue spheres surrounded all the fighters who weren't already shielded. And just as the words left his lips the hydra let loose a torrent of fire, lightning and ice at them, spreading forth a wave of destruction.

Luckily the attack was directed away from where Star said the survivors were. And even better all their shields held on

Which only strived to anger the hydra even further.

With another roar, it blindly charged into one of the buildings.

And as soon as it did so, something jumped from the building, it appeared to be a silhouette of a woman carrying something on her back.

"Oh, so that's where Keyleth was" Marco commented, squinting at the figure.

And just as Kayleth jumped off, she twisted her body so she was looking at the beast, took a second to draw a bead on its big ugly head, and then fired off her rifle. Hitting the hydra dead on, but only to have the bullet ricochet off its thick hide and hardened scales.

"Oh come on!" She complained.

And just as she was about to meet the ground feet first, a gentle column of wind picked her up and deposited her onto the ground.

"You're welcome." Frederik said.

"Well, that was blunder of a clusterflutter just now, wasn't it?" She said casually, dusting herself off, her rifle resting on her shoulder.

"You can open your eyes now Trinket." Kayleth said, looking at the person clinging to her back.

"Oohkay.." Said what, at first glance appeared to be a small child, however upon closer inspection she had pointed ears, bright yellow eyes, and green skin.

"Oh, hello I'm Trink..." She began when she saw Marco look at her with a curios gaze, but another roar interrupted her.

"This thing just doesn't know when to stay down does it?" Brann asked, scratching his beard.

"Guys! There're people still here" Marco said pointing to one of the buildings.

"I need a distraction and a ride to the top there" He said.

"Damn, they're probably trapped in, okay, I got the ride, but I don't think I have enough in me to spell up something big enough to distract it" Fredrik said.

"Oh. Let me try." Grog said, moving towards the beast, just out of its reach.

"Oi! You overgrown lizard! Over 'ere!" He shouted.

Surprisingly the hydra looked at him.

"Yourmother was a hamster, and your father smelt of elderberries! And you're so ugly you scared the shit out of an outhouse!" He yelled, insulting the hydra much to everyone's disbelief.

Even the hydra stopped moving, but only for a second, before it slammed Grog into a building.

"That did **not** work!" Grog said, as he stepped out of the rumble.

"We need to do something else." Marco said, as he shook his head. He swore, as loveable as Grog is, he can be such an idiot at times. Kinda reminds him of a certain magical troublemaker. But now that he thought about it, two more magical girls were added onto his life, Star was a handful, but now...

"Oi lad. You're stuck in yer head again" Brann said, softly knocking Marco's head.

"Huh? Wha? Oh sorry..." Marco said sheepishly.

"Wait a minute." Marco said, looking at Brann then too Fredrik and once again back to Brann.

"Uh... Fredrik." Marco said, looking up at the man.

"... Okay. But this was your idea." He said.

"Brann. I apologize in advance." Marco said, stepping away from Brann who gave him a confused look.

"THROW THE DWARF!" Frederik and Percival yelled, wide grins on their faces, grabbing onto Brann before throwing him towards the hydra heads, which immediately moved to attack the flailing, cursing, dwarf that was flying towards it.

"I'll get the lot of you for **THISSSSSS!"** Brann yelled.

"Defendarius." Fredrik yelled, summoning a shield around the dwarf before the hydra could've bitten him.

Since the hydra couldn't attack Bramm whilst shielded he decided to cling to one of the heads and started pummeling the heads with his warhammer, spewing out insults and complaints with each swing.

"Ventus" Fredrick said, hovering his hand over Marco for a second, right before Marco abruptly shot off into the building he pointed at earlier.

" _Gaaaah!_ A little warning would've helped!" Marco yelled as he shot through the air.

And flying through the side of the building where the wall collapsed, Marco landed in a heap. He looked around, trying to see if he could find any survivors, then he remembered that he had a mouth he could use to talk.

"Um... Is anyone in here? I'm here to help." Marco called out.

"..." No response.

"Hello? I know you're both in here. Come on out." He said.

"... Is the monster still there?" A small voice asked

"Yeah it's..." Marco was about to say, but he stopped himself before he could finish.

"It's being taken care of, I promise." Marco said as gently as he could.

"... You promise?"

"Yes, I promise." Marco replied.

And at that a boy with brown cat ears that matched his hair walked out of the shadows, hand in hand with a little girl who also had car ears though hers was red.

"What's your name? Are either of you hurt?" Marco asked as they walked closer.

"I'm Aku, she's Kita, my friend. And umm no we're not hurt." The boy said, shaking his head.

However the girl was visibly shaking when Marco asked the question.

"Are you sure about that Aku?" Marco asked, taking Kita's hand and turning it over, revealing the cut on her hand.

"Oh... I'm sorry, I didn't notice Kita." Aku said as Marco began cleaning and bandaging the cut.

"It's okay Aku..." Kita said, a small blush on her face.

"You just gotta pay more attention Aku." Marco said.

"Now, how about we get out of here okay?" Marco said.

~~~~~~~~~~

"Okay, hold on tight. I'm gonna go down now." Marco said, as he rappelled down the side of the building.

"And there. It's okay Aku, you can open your eyes now." Marco said as he placed them down.

"Okay, I'd prefer it if I was with you two till you found your parents but I gotta help with the hydra. I need both of you to get to somewhere safe. Can I count on you to look after her Aku?" Marco asked.

"Uh huh" He said, nodding his head.

"Okay, both of you take care now." Marco said, watching the two of them run off, away from the hydra.

With a swift tug, Marco dislodged the grappling hook from the beam and caught it.

"Okay, now to head back." Marco said, turning around, only to see that the hydra now had ten heads and a couple more buildings had been brought down.

And without a second to waste Marco ran back as fast as he could, it seems that the hydra is getting more and more violent the more heads it has.

And it seems like it was getting ready to do another breath attack, raising its head high before letting out another cone of fire and lightning and whatever elemental attribute its other heads had. Normally Marco wouldn't worry, he'd seen how strong Fredrik's barriers were and he had Star, Kelly, Janna and Jackie to help them.

However, when the attack came there was a secondary explosion, one of bright lights and pure energy.

Upon seeing that, Marco tried to quicken his place, but he was already running fast as he can, and although his sword was huge, it didn't slow him down too much.

But suddenly, Jackie, for some reason, ran past the hydra on its right side, throwing air slashes and blasts of magic at it, using her rapier as a focus.

Her attacks only fueled the hydra's anger, making it slam its claw in front of Jackie, cornering her between its heads and claws cutting off her escape since her back was up against a house, the others tried to get the hydra's attention, but it was too focused on Jackie right now.

It snaked its heads closer, ready to finally get a bite after all that exhausting destruction, it could almost taste its prey's flesh and blood on its tongue. Only to have the nearest three heads cut off, as a crescent wave of blue energy flew by, cauterizing the wounds and preventing any other heads from sprouting.

"What. The heck. Were you thinking!?" Marco said as he breathed heavily, electricity was arching from his body and sword, he was about to chastise Jackie for doing something stupid, but he saw that Fredrik was lying on the ground, his staff broken in half.

 _'She was trying to distract it for them'_ Marco realized.

" _Sigh_... Just... Please don't do anything this reckless again" Marco said, looking at Jackie with a soft look.

And then the hydra's tail whipped around and sent Marco flying through a house.

"Marco!" Jackie yelled, a cry that was echoed by Janna, Star and Kelly.

With eyes full of hate, Jackie stared down the hydra. Tossing her rapier aside, her hands began glow a deep icy blue, as a wave of water began to materialize behind her, solidifying into a huge chunk of ice before splintering off into the air as hundreds of sharp frozen spears of ice.

And with a defiant roar, she sent the flurry of ice and cold into the hydra, some simply breaking as it hit the hydra's hardened scales, while some penetrated the scaly armor, embedding themselves deep into the hydra's flank.

"By the gods, she's pissed." Elizabeth commented.

"By the gods, she's not the only one." Fredrik added, looking at the three other girls, who were emitting an aura of rage so strongly that everyone stepped away from them.

A black pentagram appeared at the ground where the one dressed as a sorceress was standing, as she raised her hands green flames rose up from the pentagram, enveloping her fists, and as she thrust her hands in front of her, the flames streaked forward with the force of an unholy flamethrower, cutting a hole straight through two of the hydra's heads.

The blonde one with the hearts on her cheeks leapt into the air, Fredrik could have sworn he saw wings made of light behind her, but as he blinked they were gone, propelling herself forward by blasting the ground, she shot herself up, just above the hydra. Raising her wand above her head it took on the form a huge pink hammer made purely of magic, and with a massive swing she pummeled one of the heads into the ground and not letting up, she swung down again and again, thoroughly flattening it.

And Kelly, who let out a low growl as red lines began to draw themselves on her arms, just vanished. One second she was standing there the next second, she was right behind the hydra with her sword raised, right before bringing it down on the base of its tail, cutting it off cleanly with one swing, and with another swing her sword bit deep into the hydra's flank, with a groan of effort she took her sword out, drawing forth a line of blood, and quickly swung again and again, each swing cleaving deep into the beast.

"By the gods, thats brutal." Keyleth said, covering Trinket's eyes.

"By the gods they bludgeoned the heads and severed the tail. Looks like they at least know what they're doing." Brann commented thoughtfully.

"I... I am impressed." Grog said, as he clapped slowly.

"By the gods. Even Grog is impressed." Percival said in disbelief.

"Let's take note not to mess with Marco whenever they're around." Fredrik said, to which the others nodded in agreement.

And speaking of Marco, he was lying on a beneath some rumble, groaning in pain as he stood up, he looked to be mostly unharmed save for the fact that he had a small gash just above his left eye.

Rushing to the hole he came through, he expected to see the hydra wrecking havoc, not Star and Kelly rushing over to him.

"Oh. It's okay guys I'm fine." Marco said, however they didn't stop and they ended up tackling him to the ground.

"Uh... If I didn't get a concussion from earlier, I do now." Marco said, rubbing his head.

"Sorry..." Star and Kelly said, mirroring each other.

"But are really okay?" They asked, still mirroring each other.

"Yes. I'm fine. I think." Marco said uncertainly.

"Hey, dude are you okay? Uh... What're you doing down there?" Jackie asked as she caught up to them.

"Ummm no clue." Marco said.

"Well come on then. And look. You're bleeding." Jackie said as she offered her hand to help Marco up.

"Thanks." He said, taking her hand and ignoring Star and Kelly's questions about where he's bleeding from.

'How the heck don't they see the blood on my face?'

"Hmm... Doesn't seem too bad of a cut. Are you hurt any where else?" Jackie said, leaning closer to his face as she checked the cut.

"Hmmm... Your face is red too." She observed, oblivious to how close their faces were.

"IS THE DORK ALRIGHT??" Janna asked/yelled.

"Yes. The dork is still alive." Marco said, covering his ears.

And while this happened, a group of soldiers rushed over to the street they were in, and with them was a blonde man in what looked like an armored lab coat.

"I'm here and I bought backup! The other Hydra has been dealt with and... BY THE GODS, WHAT IN THE SEVEN KNOWN HELLS HAPPENED HERE?" The blonde asked as he and the platoon of soldiers stopped dead in their tracks as they saw the body of what was once a fearsome beast, now a near unrecognizable charred and frozen mush.

"Oh... A little late doncha think Wilhaim?" Elizabeth told him.

"Doctah!" Trinket said, rushing over to him and hugging his leg.

"Will!" Grog said, slapping his shoulder, causing the poor smaller built man to buckle from the force.

"Good to see you all alive." Will said uneasily, the Goliath still makes him feel a little scared.

"But... Uhhh what happened here?" He asked.

"They did." Fredrik said, pointing a thumb behind him to where Star, Jackie, Kelly and Janna were surrounding Marco.

"Wow." Will said simply.

"Wow is right. How'd he get four girls to spoil him like that?" Fredrik asked.

"Oh. And why would you want to know that. Dear?" Elizabeth asked, practically whispering in his ear.

"N... No reason" Fredrik stammered.

"You better hope not." She said, glaring at him before walking off to check on her niece and her friends.

"You are so gonna be sleeping on the couch tonight." Will said, with Grog nodding behind him.

"Oh shut up. Now if you don't mind. We all kinda need a little healing." Fredrik said.

"Okay, okay. I got it." Will said, rolling his eyes.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"So you guys did that?" Marco asked, looking at the corpse of the hydra.

"Yup. Pretty much." Janna said.

"... Wow. Remind me not to make you guys angry. Also... Wow." Marco said feeling a mix or admiration, pride and a little fear for the girls.

"Hehe... So..." Star said, looking at Marco with expectant eyes.

"Soooo?" Marco repeated, confused at her antics.

"Oh come on. You know!" Star said.

"What do yo... Oh... Oh okay, sure why not. We deserve it." Marco said, realizing what she wanted.

"Yes!" Star said pumping her fist to the sky and jumping up and down.

"Ummm what?" Jackie asked looking confused.

"I'll be making..." Marco was saying.

"MARCO'S MAKING NACHOS!" Star interrupted, to which Marco rolled his eyes, a small smile on his face.

"Woah. So, like victory nachos?" Janna asked.

"Pretty much, yeah." Marco said, nodding his head.

"Nachos? What's that?" Kelly asked.

"It's the triangle food I make. The one you keep using as a spoon for ice-cream, remember?" Marco said before Star could have gone on a rant about what nachos were.

"Aaahhhh." Kelly said, a look of understanding on her face.

And at that, Kelly's aunt walked over to them.

"Kelly!" Elizabeth said, suffocating Kelly in a hug.

"Hehe. Hi auntie!" Kelly said with a giggle.

"And hello Marco." She said, walking over to Marco to give him a hug.

"Uh... Hey Elizabeth..." Marco said uneasily, returning the hug

"Ok that just feels too weird. Can't I call you aunt Elizabeth like Kelly?" Marco said when they broke the hug.

"No. Only family calls me that. Unless..." She said, looking at Marco and Kelly with a suggestive look.

"I'll stick with Elizabeth." Marco said quickly.

"Buuuu. Well, there's still time." She said with a smirk, which made Kelly blush.

"Anyway, you should go Wilhaim, he'll heal you all back to full." Elizabeth said with a smile.

"Who's William?" Marco and Kelly asked.

"He's the newest member of the guild, and our group along with Trinket." Elizabeth said.

"Ah... Oh. Sorry this was rude of me. This is Star, Janna, and Jackie they're friends with me and Kelly and also new members of the guild. Marco said, introducing them to each other.

And as they finished their introductions, Wilhaim walked over to them.

"Hello. Name's Wilhaim, but you can call me Will, but introductions later. I need to check over you all." He said, adjusting the monocle he was wearing.

"Lets start with you boy." He said, walking over to Marco.

"And done" He said, hovering his hand over the cut on Marco's head for a moment as it glowed, healing the wound.

"Now let me... Check." He said, focusing his gaze on Marco's chest as he laid his hand on it.

"Oh that's odd." He said.

"Huh? What is it?" Marco asked.

"This." Will said, clenching his and yanked on something they couldn't see, until a rune of light glowed on Marco's chest before dissipating into nothingness.

"Oh shi..." Marco was saying, realizing too late what Will did. And then a wave of pure agony and pain swept over his entire body, and with that Marco fell to the ground, unconscious, blood coming out of his nose.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Marco woke up surrounded by absolute darkness. And he seemed to floating in the air.

"Okay... This is new." Marco said to himself.

"Oh trust me, it most definitely is not." A voice said.

"Huh?" Marco said, turning around just in time to see three orbs of light spring to life.

"What the!?" Marco said in surprise.

"Easy boy." The voice seemed to originate from the green and black orb of light, the colors of which seemed to swirl and mix. And the voice seemed familiar to Marco.

"Monster arm!" Marco yelled, remembering where he heard the voice before.

"Really!? Everytime! Every. Single. Time." The orb complained.

"There there Tief. It's okay." This time the voice came from a blue orb of light, it seemed to throw off arcs of electricity from time to time as it pulsed.

"Yeah I know. It's just that... Every time man. Every time." Tief said, seemingly sighing.

"Look here Marco. I've told you once I've told you a thousand times! Monster arm took my voice! Not the other way around." Tief said sternly.

"Calm down Tief you're scaring the boy." this time the voice came from an orb seemingly made of golden light that, like with Tief, flowed like a liquid.

"Ummm... I'm sorry but what's going on here?" Marco asked.

"Long story short kid. We're your powers. My names Tief, the one golden one is Asima, and you haven't named the new guy yet." The green and black orb said.

"What?" Marco said.

" _Sigh_... Look. Everytime you come here you'd have your memories wiped when you leave. You named me and Asima here, but not him yet, you gotta name the Blessing of Thor before anything else." Tief said.

"Oh okay um... Uh... How about... Bot? You know, Blessing of Thor, B. O. T. Bot." Marco suggested.

"Hmmm... I like it." Bot said.

"Okay ummm... So can I get some explanation now?" Marco asked.

"What for? You won't remember anything anyway." Teif said.

"Now now, that's no way to treat Marco Teif." Asima said.

"Is there anything specific you need to know Marco? Ah... And we can't tell you anything much about me and Teif. We only know as much as you do after all." Asima said.

"Oh... Then ummm... Can I talk to you guys in my mindscape? Also what powers are you?" Marco asked.

"If were to reside in your mindscape you would die. Simple as that. Also you've already been using me and Teif for a long time now, although you weren't aware of it." Asima said.

"What? Really?" Marco asked.

"Of course." Asima said, and somehow a movie reel of some of Marco's memories played behind him, it first showed the first time Marco fought Ludo and his minions. It zoomed in on Marco, in the middle of a kick. A soft golden aura surrounded his body.

The next image showed was when he was fighting Tom.

"Umm.. I don't see anything here." Marco said.

"Your eyes boy." Asima said.

And when Marco looked at his eyes he did in fact see that they were glowing red.

"Woah." Marco said.

"Woah indeed. You also used us during your time in Hekapoo's dimension you know." He said.

And this time it showed an image of an older Marco seemingly floating above a sea of fire, his body cloaked by a brilliant golden aura.

And the next one show an older Marco holding two odd swords walking down a dark hallway, his eyes were blazing bright red as his blades seemed to softly glow.

"Enough of that Asima. You know Marco told us not to show too much." Teif said.

"What?" Marco asked.

"Sorry Marco, but we cannot speak any longer." Teif said.

"Oh and don't forget to speak to Alaric when you're to return to the mindscape." Bot said.

"He knows about me!" He added, as Marco's form slowly faded away from the odd place.

"Do you think he'd ever remember his visits here? Teif asked

"Hopefully not. That much strain would kill the boy." Asima said.

"You're right I suppose..." Teif answered.

"... Who do you think he'll choose?" Teif asked.

"Whichever wolf he feeds." Asima simply said.

"And you. Why didn't you talk to him?" Teif asked, the question directed everywhere.

"It would serve no purpose. And the boy needs rest." A voice answered.

"... Fair enough." Teif said.

~~~~~~~~~~~

"Ugh..." Marco groaned as he sat up.

And the first thing he saw was Star, Jackie, Janna and Kelly standing around his bed, staring down at him. They looked pissed.

"Um... It wasn't me?" He said.

"WHAT THE HECK WERE YOU THINKING!?" They yelled at him, making him flinch.

"Um... Sorry, but what are talking about?" Marco asked.

"Don't try to hide it boy. They know." Wilhaim said, looking at the boy. He was sporting a black eye and his arm was in a sling, how he got hurt was beyond Marco.

"Hide what?" Marco asked, confused.

At that the girls all glared at Will. Making the man flinch.

"Tell him." Star ordered.

"The numbing spell." Will said simply.

And at that Marco let out a silent 'Ahhhhh' as his eyes grew wide in realization.

"Oh... Oh I am so sorry..." Marco said lamely.

"Sorry!?? Marco you could've really hurt yourself! What were you thinking?" Jackie asked, the hurt in her voice stung, making Marco flinch.

"I'm... Sorry. But if I don't have that on me I couldn't have trained..." Marco began, but he shut himself up.

"What!? We thought you were just overworking yourself, but you were training?" Janna asked.

"Marco. Explain." Kelly demanded.

"I... I train in a dimension with a different time flow as us whenever I can. The numbing spell was for the pain." Marco said quietly.

"Why!?" Kelly demanded.

"Aren't we training together!?" She asked.

"Well yeah... But I couldn't keep up with you four. I never will. So I train myself as much as I can. I have to. I **need** to." Marco said, clenching his fists.

"Why. Why would you need to?" Jackie asked.

At that Marco just looked at her with the saddest eyes she ever saw.

"Jackie... I promised myself I'd protect you. All of you. I need to be stronger for that. Way stronger. For God's sake! You were all taken away from me!... I... I was... I was so useless. I let you four get kidnapped. What... What if I don't make it next time? What if I wasn't strong enough next time? What if I'm not fast enough next time!? Jackie I could **lose you guys**! And... And I don't want to lose any of you." Marco said, his voice going quiet as he sobbed.

 _'I'm... crying?'_ he thought to himself

And before he knew it, Star was locking her arms around him, she was so quiet during the whole thing Marco almost forgot she was there.

"You idiot!" She said. Repeating it over and over and over again, as she tried to bury her head as deep as she could've into Marco's chest.

"You never think for yourself! Why... Why are you such a dork!" She asked, looking up at him through tearful eyes.

At that moment Star wanted nothing more than to kiss that stupid stupid boy she called her best friend.

But she simply settled for burying her head into Marco's neck.

The sounds of his and Star's sobbing was the only sounds in the room. Followed by the sounds of the others crying along with them.

"You idiot. You know how worried we were!?" Janna asked, silent tears falling from her pained eyes, as she crushed Marco's side with her hug.

"Promise me you'd never do anything like this again. Promise me you'll never go away." Kelly said, as she gently wrapped her hands around Marco's head and brought their faces close, sobbing lightly.

"We don't want to lose you too Marco. You're not the only one who wants to protect someone." Jackie said, tears falling down her face, wrapping her arms around Marco's waist and squeezing tight.

"We're here for you too Marco. You're not fighting alone." Star said quietly.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 **WOOO! Finally. I am so very sorry this is delayed. I've turned from a night owl into a sleep deprived crow the whole week. Anyway, that stupid idea I was talking about is down there. So read on.**

~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was peaceful moment in the land of the light orbs, when all of the sudden a question popped into Asima's mind.

Asima: "Oh... Hey Teif, what do you think is up with Kelly's power? Like why does she have those lines on her body when she powers up?"

Asima asked.

Teif: "Hmmmm I don't know Asima. Although I have a feeling we'll know very soon. And random question Asi, what do you think has the power to throw a mountain?

Teif asked.

Asima: "Well that depends, although there are plenty that could destroy a mountain, the number of beings that could pick one up and throw it are quite limited. But if I was to bet on what then I had to say that... That I cannot reveal anything. That would be, what people say, "spoilers" "

Asima said with a small laugh.

?????: Oh I know what! It's a T*mumble mumble*

An unknown voice was saying, luckily it was stopped by Bot.

Bot: What the heck is wrong with you? You're not even supposed to exists yet!

Bot said, as he began to silence and detain the unknown orb with chains of light.

?????: Okay! Okay. I'll shut up...

The orb said.

?????: The reason Kelly has those lines is cause she's a D*Mumbles*

Again. Bot has silenced the pest.

 **Until next time. Bye!**


	18. Honorable Mentions

- **This is to commemorate "The Untamed Wind Naruto" for being the first to see the Critical Role referenced characters and names here(because I'm absolutely indecisive when it comes to making up names.) credits to them for "Grog" who was based on Grog. (Grog is the best)**

- **And this is to commemorate "** **org 13 is best" for immediately knowing the Voltaire reference (Goodnight Demon Slayer chapter)**

- **Shout out to "SuicideGuy" for being the first to comment and first to favorite!**

- **And also to "son of wind" the being the first to favorite!**

- **Also no, I can't do that "Nicholas Friar"... Wait, but this is also a mention. But I said no. Oh no I'm in another paradox! Aaaagghhhh!**

Okay, enough with this. I need to brood... Er... Meditate on my other story.

Edit: the Honorable Mentions for being the first to know what reference was included (if any) in future chapters will be added on to the notes of the said chapter, in order to not spoil anyone new to the story about the future chapters. Cheers! (Also I'm currently working on a chapter for my other story.)


	19. Important Question

Hey guys. First of all, sorry this isn't a story chapter, I think I'll finish another chapter for my other story before coming back here (they need it cause I left them at a cliffhanger XD) also what do you guys feel about long stories? Cause mine definitely will be one! But if there are some of you that don't want that, I will happily make an alternative ending for you guys after the first ark is finished, since after the first ark things will get crazier.

To put things in perspective we're currently about to reach the halfway point of the first ark. **The halfway point.** That's not counting the peace talks chapters. Plus there will be two(Maybe three) more arks after! Not mention I'm planning a sequel for this too.

So tell me if you guys want a shorter story and I'll plan for the alternative ending. Cheers loves!

With love and cookies:

Me.


	20. Peace Talks: Protector of the Wall

**Yeah I know I said I was gonna write for the other story before updating here, but...** **I massively messed something up so I have to revise the next chapters for the other story a bit. And since I already wrote this a little while ago, I decided to polish it up and put it on here.**

 **Also wow! I'm really glad you guys want a longer story. And like I said, this story will definitely be a long one!**

 **Peace Talks** **: Titles.**

 **"Protector of the Wall"**

It had been a couple of weeks since he had last seen any sign of the scissor forger, and he was starting to get worried, she was never gone this long without any warnings, he'd understand if this was for a challenge, but this clone hadn't issued him one.

"So where the heck is she?" Marco Diaz, twenty-one year old adventurer/vigilante/hero/rebel scum and a whole lot of other things, complained out loud, much to the displeasure of his commanding officer.

"Stand down recruit!" The officer barked, glaring at the human.

"You're having first day jitters, I get it. But this is no time to be concerned about your sweetheart." He added as he continued to scrutinize over the lined up newbies and their equipments.

"Heh, don't worry about it too much buddy, he's just jumpy cause the northeast section got attacked last night." The man next to him said, clapping Marco's shoulder as he did so, trying to console his distressed friend.

"I'm not worried about him!" Marco said, scowling at his blue haired, elven friend.

"You're not? Oh, I see... You're just pissy your girl hasn't shown herself in a while, aren't you?" The man teased with a grin.

"I am not! And she's not my... You know what, I'm just gonna shut up now, arguing with you is pointless, Q." Marco said, walking away from his buddy and leaning on the battlements of the walls, peering down upon the dark barren fields of the Plague Lands, a stark contrast to the lush verdant lands behind the wall he was on.

"Its best not to dwell on it, you know. The curse on those lands and its people were self inflicted, they brought it upon themselves." Q said, walking beside Marco, careful not to make contact with the man's weapons.

"And for the sake of Jhe'rul's beard, could you please cover your... Whatever it is you call those weapons of yours." Q said, casting a distasteful glare at the twin blades by his comrade's sides.

"Q, if you can find any scabbard that'll fit these blades I would gladly do so. But since there are none they stay where they are." Marco said, patting the blades by his hip.

His twin blades were oddly shaped and he could never find anything resembling a decent scabbard for them, shapewise, they were vaguely reminiscent of an ancient blade found on Earth, particularly from Egypt, a khopesh, Marco thought, he wasn't sure though.

But what he was sure of was that, these blades had a more elegant curve and recurve to them, ending in a point that's similar to an eagle claw hook, but with an edged point ten times nastier and sharper. The inner part of the curve was unsharpened and dull, however the outer part of the edge was honed to be razor sharp all the way to the inner and outer parts of the tip.

And although the blades themselves were unadorned with any distinctive designs or markings, their color and hue made them recognizable even in the midst of a bloody battle, the one by Marco's left was shining silver almost as if made from solid moonlight, despite the darkening sky its sharp edge gleamed golden, like the rays of the sun. The blade on his right was as stark contrast, the blade was black as pitch, as if carved from a solid chunk of obsidian rock, it's edge gleamed a malicious red, the color seemingly pulsating in the dimming light.

"...rco, are you listening?" a voice was asking.

But Marco didn't respond, he was lost in his own mind.

"Oi! Marco!" Q yelled into Marco's ear.

This time Marco did respond.

"WHAT!" Marco yelled back, covering his aching right ear.

"Look." Q said, pointing at an approaching figure riding on a horse.

"Wasn't there supposed to be a change in shift? Where are the men?" Marco asked outloud, addressing no one in particular.

"I have a bad feeling about this." Q said with a frown, making Marco shoot a glare in his direction.

"Dammit Q! How many times to I have to tell you not to jinx us!" Marco yelled at him.

"So far you've said it five times this week." Q said with mocking grin.

" _Sigh..._ Don't blame me if something stabs you through your face Q." Marco said as he shook his head.

~~~~~~~~~~~

" _Sigh..._ Another three days. We're stuck for three more freaking days! And I thought being here for just a couple of days was bad enough! Uggghhh!" Q complained, slouching on the wall as he began idly playing with a knife.

"Cant be helped Q, just count us lucky the replacements were the ones used to fortify the northeast section not us." Marco said, trying to console his friend.

" _Pssshhh..._ Of course the replacements are the ones fortifying the Wall, they're soldiers. It's their job! We're just here for temporary bulk." Q said, gesturing to the band of adventurers in the sea of soldiers they were with. The soldiers' full platemail and shining arming swords made the adventurers, who were all mainly wearing leather armor fortified with either chainmail or scalemail, stood out like a sore thumb.

"Eh, at least we're getting more pay outta this." Marco said with a shrug, making Q raise a brow at him.

"You don't even need the gold, why are you even here?" Q asked, looking at Marco like he had a second head.

"She told me to stay put and wait, so I will." Marco said simply, scooting beside his friend to sit down and as he did so, he unclasped one of the blades hanging by his side, tracing the grooves along the black blade's edge, with a mournful look on his face as he let out as sigh.

"You still chasing after **it?** " Q asked, casting a sideways glance at his buddy.

"...Yeah." Marco said simply, an angry scowl replacing his mournful look.

"You're chasing after two hares you know. And I'm well aware that you know how **that** saying goes." Q said, closing his eyes as he crossed his hands behind his head.

"Don't worry. I know which _bunny_ I'm chasing."Marco said, a small smile on his face as he reminisced about a certain fiery demoness.

"And not a word Q. Not. A. Word." Marco said, aiming his sword at his friend's throat, making Q swallow the comment he was about to say.

"Fine... Fine. Iwasjustgonnasaythatyouwerebeinganiceboyfriend, is all... " Q mumbled.

"What was that?" Marco asked, glaring at the elf.

"Nothing you don't already know." Q said with a grin.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"And the next few days were pretty uneventful, it wasn't until the las... Ow!" Marco was saying, but a tug at his bandaged arm made him cry out in pain.

"Oh sorry Marco!" Kelly said, loosening the bandage she was wrapping around his arm.

"But this is all your fault you know! Why would you even set those guys on fire? I can't believe you'd do that... Again!" Kelly said incredulously, shaking her head in mild amusement.

"I told you it was an accident alright! I didn't do it on purpose." Marco explained.

"Just like the first group of people you're set on fire?" Kelly asked.

"Nah, I meant to do that one, those jerks deserved it." Marco said.

"I'm sure they did... But please be careful next time okay?" She asked pleadingly, looking up at him with a pout.

"I will... And I'm sorry for worrying you." Marco said as he petted her head gently.

"Its okay... Can we continue the story now?" Kelly said, leaning forward, looking at Marco with eager eyes.

"Heh... Yeah, let's." Marco said, continuing from where he left off.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Where the in the hell did these zombies come from!?" Q said, slamming his bow down on an undead soldier's head, spinning around as he notched an arrow and let it fly, hitting the zombie behind Marco with a nice clean head shot.

"Just keep shooting, stabbing and staying alive dammit!" Marco answered.

"Oh you'd just love it if I stayed alive now wouldn't ya!?" Q angrily answered without thinking.

"Wait... I'd like that too." Q said, realizing what he said earlier.

"Nevermind what I said just then!" Q said, stabbing a zombie with an arrow before firing it at another.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Woah, woah, woah. That went from zero to a hundred really quick!" Kelly said surprised.

"Did it? Didn't I explain how some of the soldiers turned into zombies?" Marco asked.

"Whaaa? No. Are you sure you didn't hit your head too bad?" Kelly asked, poking Marco's temple.

"No, no I didn't Kelly. Guess my memory's still a little foggy. Anyway... Let me just backtrack a bit." Marco said, jogging his memories about how the soldiers got zombiefied.

"Oh yeah!" Marco exclaimed, snapping his fingers as he remembered.

"The commanding general was giving out orders when..." Marco began.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The commanding officer was standing on a crate, looking at the soldiers and hired mercs around him as he began to give out orders on how the mercs will, _finally_ be swapped out with the next company of soldiers since it was their last day, when out of nowhere an unholy dark bolt of lightning hit him on the side of his body, and very slowly, glowing cracks began to web around his body, spreading from where the lighting hit him, causing bits of the general's armor and strips of his flesh to flake off and wither into dust.

As he desperately clutched the rapidly spreading wound to keep himself in one piece another bolt of lightning hit him in the head, blowing away his helmet and part of his face.

"Over there!" A soldier shouted, pointing at a silhouette from below and away from the wall.

It was a man, at least in part, even from a distance the soldiers and mercs saw that it was a man only from the torso above, below that was a horrid, tentaclely, undulating mass of flesh and tree roots twisting and meshed together, connecting the abomination to the corrupted earth beneath it.

And even as an arrow hit it with a wet sounding _thwack,_ and another and another, until it was very literally covered from head to squiggly bits with arrows, it simply **sank** into the earth, disappearing with a mad grin letting out a cackling laughter of insanity.

"Well that was disgusting... Anyone in the mood for some octopus? Cause I most definitely not." Q deadpanned as he put down his bow.

However the problem didn't end there. The general who was now very much dead still had the glowing dark purple lines web around his corpse, then he began to convulse and bloat. His skin beginning to bubble and crack and it was already too late for any soldier and merc standing near the body, as it suddenly burst open, releasing viscera and gore all around as multiple bolts of lightning exploded from the corpse hitting anyone unlucky enough to be near it.

Those hit by the bolts began to choke and their eyes began to water, clawing at their skin and armor, as it bubbled and just fell off their person in clumps, revealing their sinew and muscle and right before their eyes the survivors saw the muscles take on a sickening shade of gray as it bulked up into unnaturally large masses, making them look horribly out of proportion.

The now transformed soldiers and mercs began charging through the ranks on the wall, smashing anyone slow enough not to dodge or block their blows.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"... It's not too violent is it?" Marco asked, stopping the story before it got too gorey.

"What? It was just getting to the good part!" Kelly complained.

"But... You sure you're really okay with this?" Kelly asked, changing from eagerly listening to his story to being suddenly concerned about him.

"What... What do you mean?" Marco asked, confused.

"Marco..." Kelly said in an oddly soothing voice, making the boy blush lightly.

"...Yeah?" He answered.

"There's no easy way to say this. _Sigh..._ Marco, you spent sixteen years in a different dimension. You're technically an adult, even if you don't remember most of it, that things you do remember, the stories you tell me... They make me worry, don't get me wrong they're awesome! And you're a badass, but I worry..." Kelly said, leaning closer to him and looking at him with worried eyes.

"Thanks Kelly..." Marco said, a melancholic look on his face as he pet her head, at first he did it gently then he purposely sped up, messing up her hair in the process.

"Heyyyyy!" Kelly said, pulling back as she covered her head, only to see a smiling Marco.

"Really... Thanks Kelly. But I'm okay. Sometimes the memories are pretty intense, other times they're downright scary, but I've accepted it, if I didn't I'd feel like I'm betraying my memories and all the people that gave me those memories. I've also accepted the fact that I'm a kid again, no, that's not right, I've accepted the fact that I'm **still** a kid. I haven't really done much of "growing up" in my time there, I just learned to trust my instincts, and I learned just enough about being an adult to survive." Marco said, letting out a tired yet content sigh.

"Wow... Wait, so you've never done those kinda things?" Kelly asked suddenly.

"Uh... What things?" Marco asked, confused as to what she meant.

"Nothing... Nothing... Nothing..." Kelly said as she twiddled her fingers, each word getting progressively quieter than the last.

"Let's just go back to the story! You can even omit the gore if you want. I wanna eat ice cream again as soon as I can!" Kelly said before Marco could've asked anything else.

"Okay then... Where was I?" He began.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The larger zombies were barreling through the troops, two of them were already shot down by either the arbelists or the archers.

Of the five remaining ones that were still mindlessly charging through the defensive line, three were cut down, leaving the last two zombies to Marco and Q.

With a quick draw from Q's unusually long yet elegantly recurved blade, the first zombie's head flies off leaving the body to stumble off clumsily down the wall.

The last zombie didn't get such a quick end.

Charging straight towards Marco, it brought down its disproportionately large arm to try and crush the man, only for Marco to grab onto the arm and using the zombie's own momentum against it, Marco slammed it down, a sickening _crunch_ resonating across the stonework of the wall as both stone and bone broke from the impact, unperturbed from the attack however, the zombie began to get up, only to have Marco keep it down by stepping on its shoulder, gripping the zombie's large arm with both his hands, Marco let out an almost bestial growl as he yanked the arm free from the socket, and swinging the arm like a golf club he sent the zombie flying from the wall watching it as it flew away before tossing the arm away.

He turned around to see Q looking at him with a mixed look of admiration and disgust.

"Don't look at me like that. You know I only draw my blades if I really need them." Marco said as he crossed his arms.

To which Q just looked at him with a raised brow a bored expression on his face.

"Well... You may want to draw them right about now." Q said, pointing behind Marco, where an undead horde was charging towards the wall.

"Shit." Marco said, drawing the twin blades.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Dammit. Dammit. Dammit." Marco repeatedly said as he cut down another zombie.

Somewhere behind him Q shouted something Marco couldn't quite make out.

"Just keep shooting, stabbing and staying alive dammit!" Marco yelled back, just as Q shot another zombie behind Marco.

And Marco got to work, cleaving a large V shaped chunk out of a zombie with his swords, and as the upper part of its body fell off another zombie leapt at Marco, only for Marco to knock it away with a kick, but instead of a _"flicking"_ kick, he did a push kick where most of the strength was generated from his hip, focusing the full weight of his body on one small point, launching the zombie back with enough force to flatten it and the several zombies that was in its way.

"...vermind what I said just then!" Q was saying.

"Dammit. There's no end to them." Marco said, jogging to Q's side.

"What do you expect? Our _comrades_ join their ranks when they die!" Q replied.

"And I'm almost out of arrows." He added, as he checked the quiver attached to his hip.

"Where the hell are the reserves? Aren't they supposed to switch with us?" Marco asked, looking out for any sign of reinforcements.

"Probably being sent to another section." Q said. Which was probably right, the northeast section was battered by attacks from the past several days.

"If so, then we're dead." Marco stated.

"We need to call for backup ourselves if we want this wall to stand." He added.

"Are you kidding? If we want this wall to stand then we stay! If we leave these worthless buggers they wouldn't last an hour more!" Q retorted.

"No offense buddy." He added as a soldier glared at him.

"Damn... Just... Damn." Marco said, frustration in his voice as he ran his hand through his hair.

"Q... you're gonna have to run." Marco said hesitantly.

"What?? If you think for one mome.." Q began.

"Look. If you don't go now we'll be overrun! This respite won't last. I can feel another horde forming up. You need to go. Now." Marco ordered.

"And what? Come back to a wall full of corpses!?" Q retorted, glaring at his friend.

"You really think I'll die that easy?" Marco said, a cocky grin on his face.

"We'll be barricading ourselves in the keep, so long as that flag stands we're alive." Marco said.

"... Fine. But if you're dead by the time I get back here I'll kill you. If you're alive then introduce me to your girl later, I need to see the lass who managed to tame someone like you." Q said.

"For the last time. She's not.." Marco said, but it was too late as Q jumped off the wall, gusts of wind flowing around him as he fell and took off, faster than any horse anyone at the wall ever saw.

"Heh. Godspeed... you idiot."Marco said before turning around and shouting out orders to bolster the defenses.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"And honestly, I can't remember what specifically happened next. What I remember is that we held the wall as best we could and..." Marco trailed off, his voice quiet and small.

"What? WHAT? DID YOU DIE!?" Kelly asked, literally at the edge of her seat.

"Uh... Kelly, I'm right in front of you." Marco said, chuckling a little as realization hit Kelly.

"But we were pretty beat up when the reinforcements arrived." Marco said.

"Dang... That's intense." Kelly said, letting the information sink in. Her friend fought through multiple hordes of zombies, and the way he said it made it sound like it was just another Friday night for him.

"And I did die that one time though..." Marco said, snapping Kelly out of her thoughts.

"WHAAAAT!?" Kelly asked, grabbing Marco's shoulders as she shook him.

"Yeah... I'd say it's a story for another time, but I can't remember how, what or why. I just kinda know I died one time..." Marco said, scratching the back if his head.

"Wow... Let's go get ice cream now." Kelly said, changing the subject as she began pulling Marco out of the bed.

"Yeah, sure. But I gotta go by five, there's a test I need to read up on. And I'm pretty sure Star hasn't touched her homework yet." Marco said.

"Yeah, yeah. You can deal with that later. It's ice cream time!" Kelly said, pushing him through a portal excitedly as he chuckled at her love for ice cream.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Dammit! What will you do if we're too late!?" Q demanded, looking at the heavily armored man riding beside him.

"If we're late we'll have to take back the Wall. That simple." He said stoically, whipping the reins of his horse, willing it to move faster.

At this Q just let out a low growl.

' _Bad enough they locked me up for an hour, but getting in a fight will just delay us'_ Q thought to himself, as they rode on.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

True to Marco's word the flag was indeed still standing, but it was singed and in tatters, the pole was tilted, as if it was leaning on something.

Bodies were littered everywhere. And as they got closer to the keep the number of bodies only increased, to the point that they had to wade through a waist high pile of corpses.

"By the gods..." The general said, a frown on his face as he looked around him.

"Cry to your gods later. Help me move this door." Q said, pushing on a stubborn wooden door.

"Move then." The general said, lifting up his foot before slamming it down on the door, knocking it down from its hinges.

The scene inside the keep was wasn't much better than the scene outside.

More bodies littered the floor and blood stained the walls, Marco was nowhere to be found.

"Dammit. Where is he!?" Q yelled, as he looked around and asked the wounded.

"General... You need to see this." A soldier who came from the roof said.

And here Q thought he'd seen the worse of it. He was wrong.

Up on the rooftop where the flag stood was a mass of bodies, both from undead, beasts and whatever undead beings that had wings.

In the middle of it all, leaning on the base of the flagpole as he supported the large flag was one man, his armored hoodie stained an even deeper red, as the wind blew through his open hoodie and armor, it revealed a large gash on his chest which was bandaged haphazardly. But despite this Marco had a massive grin on his face.

"An here I thought ya wou'n't make it." He slurred, coughing as he did so.

"You massive idiot! Wha..." Q began, but his sermon was interrupted by an odd ripping sound.

"What the hell were you thinking!" Someone shouted, and all of a sudden a pale skinned demoness in a yellow ball gown, with a flame above her head rushed at Marco.

"Hpoo! I... Ummm.. hi?" Marco said lamely, looking up at the lady.

"Hi? **Hi!?** What the hell we're you thinking staying here of all places!?" Hekapoo yelled at him.

"Sorr..." Marco began, but a pale hand from out of a small portal smacked him behind the head.

"And don't call me that!" She said, glaring at him.

"Sorr..." He began again, but this time Hekapoo walked up to him and smacked him upside the head.

"That's for being an idiot." She said in an unusually soft voice, eyeing the wound on his chest.

"Sorry..." Marco said, a small smile on his face.

"... So this is the lucky lass?" Q asked, startling both of them.

"What?" Hekapoo asked, confused as to what he meant.

"Dammit Q. How many times I have to tell you, Hpoo... isn't my girl." Marco said a little... hesitantly.

Q simply looked at Hekapoo who immediately lost interest in the conversation for some reason and was ignoring their conversation entirely, and was now eyeing the wound on Marco's chest.

"You sure about that?" Q asked as he turned to face Marco.

"Wha... What is wrong with you?" Marco asked, utterly perplexed at his friends stubbornness on the matter.

"Eh, I've got a list." Q replied with a shrug.

And before Marco could reply he felt some warm liquid being poured over him. And almost immediately his wounds began stitching themselves together, he felt his flesh being knit and renewed albeit in a slow and rather painful manner.

" _Urgh..._ " Marco grunted.

"You could've just had me drunk that you know." Marco said through clenched teeth, looking up at Hekapoo as she threw away a now epmty potion bottle.

"Yeah, sorry not sorry, muscles." Hekapoo said with a grin.

"Muscles? Is that your nickname?" Q asked, looking at Marco, who although was quite strong, muscles didn't seem to fit him too well, at least not yet.

"Yeah, well that and fleshwad. And who are you?" Hekapoo asked him.

"No one important. So... I'm guessing your nickname is Bunny?" Q asked, much to Hekapoo's surprise and irritation as a small blush appeared on her face.

"Wha... He only called me that once!" She said.

"So it's true..." Q said.

"No! Why the hell would you tell someone that!" Hekapoo yelled at Marco.

"I didn't!" Marco yelled back.

"Yes he did." Q lied.

"He also told me he loved you and he felt so lonely not being by your side for, what seemed like the longest time to him." Q said, lying through his teeth.

"Wha... Ahh..." Hekapoo stammered.

"Okay I'm done. For what you did here, consider me beat." She said, shaking her head in confusion and mild delight.

"Hekapoo wait!" Marco began, but it was already too late as the clone _poofed_ away.

"Oh so that's her name! Heka..." But Q's smile melted away as he realized who that's person was.

"What the f... Hekapoo's you're girl!?" Q said, looking at Marco with a mixed look of confusion and admiration.

" _Sigh..._ Oh shut up Q." Marco said, stretching his sore body, and already planning on where to go next.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 **This was longer than I expected. But anyway I hope you guys liked it. So the next few chapters are gonna be a little intense, so after I fix my other story I'll be focusing here for a while. Also I kinda went a little overboard with writing this story. We're not supposed to be "M" yet *shrug, but we will in time. Anyway, see you soon!**

 **Just to be clear, no. Marco and Hekapoo weren't dating.**


	21. Am sick :(

**Sooooo sorry guys, but I won't be able to continue to write for a while, I'm a little sick (And really stressed out)** **but I'll be back as soon as I can! Next week at the latest, I promise! Anyway the next three to five chapters are gonna be intense as hell! We're gonna be seeing one of the "bosses" I teased in a chapter way back when. That snippet from the soldier reporting to the Queen is gonna be here, we'll learn more about Kelly, and the chapter that'll make this story "M" Is gonna be here. (I apologize in advance.** **(No it's not lemon!)**


	22. A little something

**[Dimension: Unknown]** **[Location: Unknown]**

Star was currently running through a field, laughing and giggling her lungs out as her best friend chased after her.

"Come on Marco! I know you're faster than that." Star teased as she turned around watched him chasing after her.

"Yeah, but where's the fun in that?" He yelled after her, as he laughed. He usually didn't let her get too far from him, but he was currently enjoying their game of interdimensional tag, it wasn't everyday that they'd get to have a, relatively, tame adventure.

"Well if you don't hurry up you'll never catch up to me!" Star answered, as she turned around and began sprinting off, but unbeknownst to her a pack of wolves with deep black fur had managed to sneak up on her, and one of them was about to pounce on her.

Before Star could even scream, or fire off a spell at the leaping wolf in front of her, a streak of red flashed by, and before her eyes she saw Marco tackle the wolf mid flight, as he landed he was now gripping the wolf's throat with one hand, and with a flick of his wrist he snapped the wolf's neck, he looked at the remaining wolves and growled at them, his eyes glowing bright red with anger as he snarled, revealing his sharp fangs.

But that didn't bother the wolves one bit, and they inched their way closer. This just made Marco angrier, they were planning to hurt Star, he thought to himself.

"Oh hell no you don't!" He growled at them, just as jet-black shadowy wings popped out his back, and he hovered a few inches off the ground, looking at the pack in front of him and Star, easily twelve of so wolves were about to attack them, making Marco smile wickedly.

"You ready there _mi Estrella?_ " Marco asked, not noticing the blush on Star's face.

"Always am... _Wild man_ " Star said with a smile, just as her wand glowed pink.

 ***STATIC*** **[Location: Echo Creek]** **[Dimension: Earth Dimension]** Marco was sleeping soundly in his room, it was still a couple of hours before sunrise so him sleeping was to be expected, however the floating skull hovering above him, either didn't know or simply didn't care, as it proceeded to call his name over and over.

"Marco, Marrrrrcoooooo, **Marco!** " It yelled, startling the boy off his bed.

" _Ghhhnnnnn..._ What do you want Temmie? It's... Four in the morning!" Marco said with a groan as he checked the time on his phone.

"So? We should work on your spells now!" Temmie said happily, the pinpoints of fire in the skull's eyeholes flashing brightly.

" _Sigh..._ Temmie, how many times do I have to tell you? I **need** sleep at night, if not I could die!" Marco exaggerated, he didn't like tricking the skull, but he really wanted to be back in bed.

"WHAT???" The skull yelled, making Marco jump, knocking his carved stuff down.

"Temmie! No shouting!" Marco said quietly through grit teeth as he propped the staff back up by the wall.

"Oh... Sorry master. So we'll continue working on spells tomorrow?" Temmie asked.

"Yes Temmie, we will. And if I'm not too busy maybe we could practice for a bit after school later." Marco said, making the skull squeal with delight.

"Uhpuhpup. No shouting. I don't wanna wake up my parents, or Star." Marco said, lying back down on his bed.

"Okay master... Goodnight." Temmie said quietly.

"G... _night_ " Marco said sleepily.

 ***STATIC*** **[Location: Butterfly Castle]** **[Dimension: Mewni]** Star Butterfly, Princess of Mewni was standing by a balcony, looking over a sea of her people that was gathered by the castle, such a crowd was to be expected whenever there was important news to be announced. And right now, there was no news more important than the one the royal family was about to say. After all, announcing the new Prince and future King of Mewni was definitely a big thing.

"Are... Are you sure about this Star?" A voice hiding in the dark asked.

"Yes. I'm sure." She said.

"But all I did was take a stupid sword out of a stupid rock! You can't marry me just cause of that!" The voice complained.

"And you saved my life! _Again_. I'm not saying I'm for this whole _arranged_ marriage, but... I'm not entirely against it Marco." Star said, beckoning her future husband forward.

And coming out of the dark and into the light, was Marco Diaz, dressed in a white princely outfit with red linings and gold designs. His new sword was strapped to his side, a faint golden aura emanating from within the scabbard.

Star practically _purred_ at the sight of him. True she said that she wasn't entirely for this whole thing, but in truth, she couldn't be happier.

"Now... Come forward my Prince, and greet your people." Star said as she lead him forward so that everyone can see him, and she did this with such poise and grace that Moon and Marco were both equally surprised and impressed, and it made Marco look at her with a soft look and a small smile, the very same look that always made Star feel warm and happy inside, Marco had no idea how much she loved it whenever he looked at her like that.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 **Here, I couldn't leave you guys without at least something like this! These are all ideas for stories I'm planning to write later (or maybe sooner)**

 **First one is an AU where, because of a magical accident, Marco became a vampire, whether he's a full vampire or not is a secret. Could possibly be a TammyXMarco ship, JannaXMarco ship, Or a StarXMarco ship! It's an action, drama, romance-ish focused story!**

 **Second one is an AU where Marco found a skull in their attic around the time he began practicing Karate, so when he meets Star he's a green belt in karate and is a fledgling wizard. Possible StarXMarco thing or a TammyXMarco thing. Or maybe a StarXMarcoXTammy thing. This story will be a little more serious. So yeah. Mainly Fantasy/Adventure story! But will contain Romance(Fluff)**

 **Third one is one where Marco somehow takes a magical sword out of a stone and he gets crowned as Prince of Mewni and becomes engaged to Star.**

 **Heavy Fluff early on with StarXMarco and some Heavy-Ish Drama later in the story with an OC.**

 **Which Story do you guys like best?**

 **Also I'm gonna be taking your advice on the whole mentioning whether it's a flashback or not and stuff, but I may forget or I'll feel like it doesn't need it cause it's obvious or something.**

 **Also being just being awake reeeeaaalllyy hurts(I'm still sick), so I'll be going to sleep. G'night ye beautiful buggers.**


	23. Previews!

**Woooooo! Finally I'm done. Would've finished sooner but someone knocked me out... Among other things.**

 **Also it seems that Wizard** **Marco is the top one, followed by Prince Marco and then Vamp Marco.**

 **So the preview will be Vamp Marco, Prince Marco and Wizard Marco respectively. Enjoy!**

 **[Blood Bound] Vamp AU**

"Star..." Marco said softly, calling out to the princess he was dancing with.

"How do you know my name, Stranger?" Star purred, leaning closer to him as he led the dance.

"It's me silly." Marco said with a soft laugh, resting his cheek on Star's hair as he pulled her to his chest.

"No really, who are you?" Star asked, leaning away from him as they did a slow spin.

"Star, it's me, Marco." He said, briefly lifting up his mask mid spin.

"Marco!?" Star yelled out surprised, she should've been angry at him for following her here, but he was such a good dancer.

"...I really should be mad at you. You're lucky you're a great dancer." Star said with a small pout.

"Heh... I just never had a partner as pretty as you to dance with." Marco said, once again pulling her close to him as their dance neared its peak.

The combined force of the compliment and the sudden closeness made Star blush, and the smile on Marco's face as the light of the Blood Moon reflected off his chocolate brown eyes giving them a beautiful gleam didn't help. At all.

"Marco..." Star purred, looking deep into his eyes.

"Yes Star?" Marco said, adorably tilting his head to the side.

"I... Can I..." Star began, but their moment was interrupted as Marco was violently shoved away from her.

And standing there with flame wreath fists, just as the light of the moon slowly faded away, was Tom, his three eyes glowing an eerie white.

"That dance. Was meant. **FOR ME!** " Tom growled, floating up into the air as pillars of flames erupted behind him.

Thinking fast, Star fires off a blast of magical ice, meant to encase the demon, however Tom managed to deflect the blast with a fireball of his own, dispelling the ice and knocking the wand out of the princess's hand and slightly singeing her hand.

"Ow!" Star exclaimed, blowing on her hand to lessen the burn.

And upon seeing his bestie get hurt, Marco turned to face Tom, his once brown eyes now glowing a fierce and fiery red and a growl emanated from him as jet black shadowy wings sprouted on his back, somehow phasing through his clothes.

And Tom looked on in shock as the "human" flew at him and landed a punch across his face, strong enough to send the demon flying to the far end of the ballroom where he hit and slid down a wall.

Floating back down to Star, Marco immediately took off her gloves and very gently held her hand, looking it over for any burn marks.

"Does it hurt Star?" Marco asked, looking at her with concern written all over his face.

"N... No. Maybe just a little?" Star said uneasily.

"I'm sorry. Star... Let's go home now, I'll take care of this." Marco said, instinctively placing a soft kiss on her hand, just like his mother did whenever he had hurt his hand when he was a child, making Star turn completely red.

It took a full five seconds for him to realize what he had just done, but before he could be embarrassed he heard a low growl from the far end of the room.

"Ohhohoh. That's it. You're dead!" Tom said, rocketing towards Marco, only to have a wall of flame erupt in front of him.

"What the..." Tom said as stopped mid flight, though that was out of surprise than anything else really, he was fireproof after all.

He was however, not lightning proof, cause just as he stopped, a bolt of lightning struck him down, causing him to crash into the ground, and just as he was about to get up again another bolt of lightning struck him from the side, shocking him and knocking him out.

Marco and Star watched this in complete shock and awe, and what Marco saw next caused his jaw to drop.

Moving through the crowd of demons was another demon who looked pretty similar to Tom except she was... well, a she.

The demon wore an ivory white dip dress, so the front was cut off at the knee but it was longer at the back, the dress had red and gold designs along the hem with a red lined black belt around her waist, her off the shoulder sleeves showed just a bit of skin as her nape was showed off, she had lilac colored skin, and three eyes just like Tom, but her horns, which more closely resembled the horns on Star's headband than Tom's, were tipped black and her hair, that reached just above the small of her back, was a light shade of pink.

She had her three eyes trained on Marco, as she made a beeline for him.

Immediately Marco took up a defensive stance, bringing up his arms up as he floated a few inches above the ground.

"Woah... Easy there tiger." The demon said, bringing up her arms in a placating manner.

But Marco just eyed her through his mask, refusing to let his guard down.

"Relax, will ya? My name's Tammy, and I'm sorry about my brother, he's... Well, he's himself. Nothing I can do about that." Tammy said with a shrug, extending her arm out for a handshake.

At this Marco just titled his head to the side before lowering his arms and floating back down, taking off his mask as he reached out to shake Tammy's hand, however before he could shake her hand she recoiled, bringing her hand delicately close to her chest as she stared curiously at his face.

"Umm... Is something wrong?" Marco asked.

"Uh... N... No. Nothing... Nothing's wrong." She answered, clearing her throat before she shook his hand.

"And heyya Star." Tammy said, standing on her tippy toes as she waved at Star who was a ways behind Marco.

"Hey Tammy" Star said with a small smile, clutching her hand close to her chest.

"Oh right! Star we gotta go home." Marco said, much to Tammy's displeasure.

"Already? The dance just got started. And there's plenty of food here." Tammy said.

"Thanks for the offer, maybe next time we'll stay for longer. But Star's hurt, I gotta get her home now." Marco said.

"Unless... You want to stay here?" Marco asked, looking at Star.

"No no I'll go, I'm a little tired now anyway." Star said, stifling a yawn.

"Oh... Well let me show you to the lift then." Tammy offered.

"Thanks, that would be nice." Marco said, smiling at the demon.

"No problem, least I could do." She said as she lead the way.

And with that, they made their way to the hellevator.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"So..." Tammy began, breaking the silence as they walked on.

"Hmm? What is it?" Marco asked.

"What was that thing earlier? You know... With your hands, was that a sword hand dance or something?" She asked.

"N..." Marco began, but Star beat him to the punch.

"Psshhh, Nah. That's how Marco fights." Star said.

"With a dance?" Tammy asked, confused.

"Its... Not a dance. It's Karate." Marco explained.

"Oh... I thought you wanted to dance with me or something." Tammy said, a hint of disappointment in her voice.

"Oh... Well, maybe next time then. I've been told that I was a pretty good dancer very recently." Marco said with a smirk.

"Oh? Well I'll take you up on that offer then." Tammy said with a smile.

"By the way, what branch are you from?" Tammy asked.

"Huh?" Marco said confused.

"You know, your faction, your group, your family, which bloodline are you from?" Tammy said, listing different things since Marco just looked confused.

"Sorry, but I have no idea what you're talking about." Marco said.

"What? You're a Vampire aren't you? And a pure blood at that." She said.

"Sorry to disappoint, but I'm only human." Marco said.

"Oh, and there's the lift." Marco said, softly taking Star's hand and walking towards the lift.

"Thanks for everything, Tammy." Marco said as he climbed in.

"Yeah, see ya gurl!" Star shouted as she waved her goodbye.

"Heh... Yeah, see ya. Oh, and I'm saving that dance for you Marco!" Tammy yelled with a smile, just as a winged demon carried the lift back up.

"Human huh..." Tammy said curiously, a small smile lingering on her face as she walked back to the ballroom, humming to herself as she walked.

 **[Rise: Kingdom of Light] Prince AU** 'Okay Marco. Just play it cool and no one will pay you any mind.' Marco thought to himself.

Telling his parents about his (somewhat forced) engagement was stressful enough, he didn't need the entire school to know this too.

Well sure his parents might have squealed in joy when they heard he and Star were gonna get married, but still... They were an exemption, he was pretty sure no one was gonna act like they did.

"Okay... Just calm down now, it's not like you'll be announcing it to everyone in school or anything." Marco whispered to himself.

"Woah... Star, where did you get that ring?" Someone, who passed them by had asked.

'Oh no...' Marco thought to himself.

"Oh this? Marco gave it to me! He hunted down a jewel beast and then had this ring made for me." Star said happily.

"Marco did?" Janna, who was sneaking up behind Marco to take his house keys, asked.

"Why'd he do that? He lost a bet or something?" Janna asked with a chuckle.

"Oh yeah! I haven't told you yet." Star said, beaming at her with her signature smile, and at this point Marco covered Star's mouth with his hands, shaking his head at her.

But unrelentingly, Star yanked his hands off her face and then gripped his hand in hers.

"We're engaged!" Star declared, proudly. A massive smile on her face, as the smug smile on Janna's face slowly turned into a look a surprise and confusion.

And at this everything and everyone in the hallway froze, almost as if someone had stopped time again.

"Umm... Guys?" Star said, tilting her head to the side.

Meanwhile Marco was sweating bullets and his heart was beating so hard he just knew he was causing countless tiny earthquakes under his feet.

And Marco was just about to play it off as a joke, but, after a solid minute or two of complete silence, the entire hallway exploded to life, everyone was bombarding Star with questions, and some of the guys were looking at Marco with mixed looks of confusion, jealousy, hatred, disbelief and downright shock.

"So much for keeping it low-key." Marco mumbled to himself.

And just as the barrage of questions was reaching its peak, a pillar of flame erupted in front of Marco, startling the students all around them.

And marching out of the fire was a very, very, angry Tom, his eyes were blazing with hellish fury.

" **DIAAAAAAAAAZZZZ** " The demon roared.

"Ah shit." Marco said to himself.

"Tom!??" Star yelled out, aiming her wand at her Ex, but before she could freeze him again his entire right arm erupted in flames, making the entire hall of students panic and stampede, stopping Star from getting a bead on the demon.

And as the demon marched ever closer, Marco watched as the flames on his arm crawl down into his hand, and slowly forming what appeared to be the shape of a sword, and with a flick of Tom's wrist the flames dissipated, and in its place was a long stygian sword, and the entirety of the sword was black, from the blade all the way to the pummel, almost as if it was dipped in ink.

"Tom... Wait... We can talk this out can't we?" Marco said desperately.

"Talk? TALK? First you stole my dance. Now you went and stole Starship from me. There's no talking here Marco. I'm here to take your head." Tom said, bringing his sword down on Marco's head.

And in a flash of bright yellow light a sword appeared in Marco's hands, it's brilliant amber blade intercepting the dark sword aimed at Marco's face.

"What the..." Tom began, but a swift kick from Marco sent the demon skidding a few feet back, an angry but calm look on the human's face as he strode forward.

"I stole nothing of yours." Marco growled in a voice that didn't seem to belong to him, but was his all the same.

"I didn't choose to be a prince, Tom. This was shoved onto me without my consent." Marco said quietly, looking over at Star, who was still struggling with the sea of bodies, as he locked blades with the demon.

"Really? Then give it up. Say you renounce the vows, break the engagement right here, right now." Tom said.

And at this Marco looked over at Star again, who had heard what the demon said and was now standing still and unmoving, utterly shocked by what she heard, and Marco just shook his head, chuckling to himself as he did so.

"Trust me Tom, I want to. I really do, this is just way too crazy after all. But... I can't. I just can't." Marco said with a smile.

"But if this is how's its going to be, then so be it." Marco said, disengaging from the sword lock and jumping back, taking on a defensive stance with his sword.

"You could've come out of this with your life you know... Guess you really are stupid." Tom said, charging towards Marco with his sword ablaze.

And as their swords clashed, a bright light swallowed them both, and Marco found himself standing in a lush green field, with a picturesque sunset by the horizon, and he was face to face with a towering purple demon, with black horns curling back behind his head, large shadowy wings billowing behind him and his shirtless torso was covered in glowing runic tattoos, his twin scimitars glowing green in the light of the setting sun.

Marco adjusted his grip on his sword and cracked his neck, his hoodie was gone and was replaced by a long red cloak, it's weight was somehow comforting and familiar to Marco.

And without warning, the demon rushed forward, and as if on instinct, Marco rolled to the side, dodging the blades as they slammed down on where he was, spray grass and dirt everywhere, and not losing a beat Marco drove his sword into the demons side, only to have the demon knock Marco away with a backhanded strike.

Landing with a roll to lessen the impact, Marco sprang up unfazed, only to find out that his sword was embedded in the demon's side.

"Heh..." Marco said with a chuckle, a confident smile on his face as he rushed head on towards the demon, throwing caution to the wind, and narrowly avoiding being sliced into three by dodging the crossing slash the demon made, by jumping up high, spinning as he did so, and mid spin, arriving in a flash of light the sword appeared in his hands, just in time as he landed behind the demon and did a spinning slash at its side.

However, as the blade bit into the demon's side, it simply turned around, completely unfazed by the attack.

And as if Marco's body was on autopilot he, for some reason he didn't know, brought his left arm up, just as the demon breathed in, it's chest swelling up ever so slightly, before spewing out green flames at the boy, and just as the flames reached him another brilliant flash of light enveloped everything, and this time Marco found himself back in the hallway, Tom was in front of him beaten, bruised and frozen in ice.

"Wha... What happened?" Marco asked confused, he was drawing a blank on what had just happened.

"Marco!" Star yelled, tackling Marco into the ground, luckily he was already on his knees, so it didn't hurt him too much.

"Heh, hey Star, what ummm... What happened here?" He asked again.

"You... You almost beat him, but... But..." Star began, but she started sniffling as she tried to continue.

"Star? Hey, hey, it's okay, tell me wha..." Marco began as he pet her hair, trying to calm her down.

"What the heck is wrong with you!?" Star yelled, interrupting what Marco was saying, and surprising him.

"You almost won. But... But... you just... You just stopped moving! Did you want to die there!??" Star yelled at him, tears falling down her usually smiling face, and it broke Marco's heart, seeing that.

"Sorry Star... I don't know what happened, I'm sorry... I'm sorry." Marco said quietly, squeezing Star tight in his arms.

"Marco..." Star said, looking deeply into his chocolate brown eyes.

And at this Marco gingerly cupped her cheek in his right hand, slowly caressing her cheek with his thumb as he looked into her bright blues eyes, slowly leaning closer to her face as Star did the same, until eventually their lips met in a soft, sweet kiss.

 **[Unchained Potential] Wizard AU**

"You know, I really don't get why don't want anyone to know you can use magic Marco." Star said, walking home with her partner in crime: Marco Diaz.

"Because... There's no other human who use magic other than me Star. I don't wanna stand out like that." Marco explained.

"Stand out? Marco, you punch monsters, go dimension hopping, you're an amazing cook, and your bestest best friend, me, is a magical princess from another dimension. I'm pretty sure you already stand out, Marco." Star said with a giggle.

"Exactly, and I don't want to add on to that." Marco said, rolling his eyes at her, but smiling nonetheless.

"Oh come on Marco, I'm pretty sure you standing out has its perks, like let's say with a certain demoness... Eh, eh?" Star said, nudging Marco with her elbow.

" _Sigh..._ Star, you know we're just friends right? And what about you and Tom huh? You want me to tease you about him?" Marco countered back.

"No." Star said immediately.

"See. Annoying isn't it?" Marco said.

"Yeah, but Tammy's different. She's actually nice, not like **that** jerk" Star said.

"Heh... Okay, then maybe I'll just spend my friendship Thursday with her." Marco said.

"What?? No!" Star yelled, a hurt look on her face as she stopped in her tracks, looking at Marco like he grew a second head.

"I'm kidding Star. Just... No more teasing, I get enough of that from Janna everyday." Marco said with a tired sigh.

"Okay..." Star said quietly, frowning to herself.

'Why don't I want Marco spending time with Tammy?' Star thought to herself as she continued walking.

~~~~~~~~~~~

"Hey... Hey... Hey Marco." Someone said softly, gently shaking Marco awake as they did so.

" _Hnnnggg_ , wha? Who's there?" Marco said groggily, blinking the sleep out of his eyes.

"Hehe it's me... And hey, did you know you're cute when you sleep." Tammy said with a giggle.

"Huh? Tammy? It's... Uh, what time is it?" Marco asked, searching his person for his phone, and nearly falling off the couch as he did so.

"It's exactly half past midnight." Tammy said with a smile.

"Oh, okaaaaay... And you're here because?" Marco said questioningly.

"I need your help." Tammy said bluntly.

And at that, Marco sat up, immediately awake.

"Why, what happened?" Marco asked.

"Heh... It's a little embarrassing... But I lost something, and I need to find it before morning comes." Tammy said meekly.

"Okay... Well, Star's probably asleep already, so let's go." Marco said, looking at the empty space beside him, as he stood up and stretched.

"Yay! I knew I could count on you." Tammy said as she lunged at him, wrapping her arms around him in a tight hug.

"Heh, of course you can. Now let's go. I still got class later." Marco said.

"Okay hold on, you might feel a little warm." Tammy said, snapping her fingers, and just like that, a pillar of flame quietly but rather quickly rose around Marco, enveloping him and lighting up the room.

And right before Tammy followed through, she left a folded piece of paper on the table in front of the couch.

"Sorry, Star. I'm gonna be borrowing him for a bit." Tammy whispered into the room before walking into the flames, dissipating the flames as she walked through it.

And just as the last wisps of fire died down, Star skipped down the stairs, a soft smile on her face as she hummed to herself.

"Hehe, I'm baaaaack Mar... co...?" Star began cheerily, but as she saw the empty couch her smile fell, and her voice became quiet.

"Awww... Did he wake up?" Star asked herself, disappointment evident in her voice, after all they spent almost every Thursday night passed out on the couch together.

With a small frown, Star turned around, however, just as she was about to make her way back up the stairs she noticed a small folded note fall off the table.

"Huh?" Star curiously, as she picked up the note.

"Oh... Tammy needed his help." Star said monotonously, a small frown on her face and an unknown emotion swirling in her chest.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Walking out of the fire pillar, Marco found himself in a large room that was colored a mix of pink and black, it also had a mixed motif composed of a wide variety of designs, some parts of the room was decorated with cutesy touches like a pile of pushes near a pink bookshelf full of adorable knickknacks, and other parts of the room were decorated with charred bones and lava, on the wall above the large black and purple bed was a variety of posters, ranging from heavy metal bands, to ones of Love Sentence.

And looking at this, Marco couldn't help but chuckle to himself a little. Just in time for Tammy, who just walked out of the pillar of flame, to see him smiling to himself.

"Hm, what's up?" Tammy asked.

"Oh hey Tammy, Nah, nothings wrong, I just thought that this room really suits you." Marco said with a smile.

"Huh, what makes you say that?" She asked with a raised brow.

"I dunno, it just... Feels so... you, in here." Marco said.

And this was the truth, in the brief time Marco has spent with her he knew that she was exactly like this, part of her was on one end of a spectrum, dark, powerful, and a little scary at times but part of her was also on the other side of the spectrum, warm, cheerful, a little reckless at times, but honestly very cute and adorable a total cinnamon bun, she's can't be entirely described as one or the other, instead she's a perfect blend of the two, it was just part of her charm.

And it was only when Marco saw Tammy's blushing face that he realized he was telling her this out loud.

"Oh... Uh... Umm..." Marco stuttered

"Shut up..." Tammy said quietly, looking away from him, the blush still on her face.

"Okay... soooo... want was it you needed to find?" Marco asked, desperately trying to change the subject.

"Oh... Yeah... I need to find a collar." Tammy said, temporarily forgetting why she had a blush in her face.

"A collar? Okay then, I'll need something significant to it, like where you kept it, or maybe a recent picture of it" Marco said.

"Oh, I have the box where I kept it, right here." Tammy said, turning to one of her nightstands and rummaging inside.

"Aaaannnd here it is!" Tammy said, pulling out a white jewelry box and handing it to Marco.

"Okay, this'll do." Marco said, placing the box onto the floor and then reaching into his hoodie, only for him to realize he wasn't wearing a hoodie, just his usual gray shirt.

"Oh, I forgot bring my hoodie." Marco realized, a frown on his face.

"Oh, I got you covered there." Tammy said, strolling over to her closet, rummaging for a bit, then emerging with a red hoodie that looked almost exactly like one of Marco's hoodies.

Because it was.

"Uh... Tammy, why do you have one of my hoodies?" Marco asked, eyeing the hoodie in her arms.

"Reeeeeeeeaaaaasons" She answered with a wide toothy grin, offering the hoodie back to him.

And at this Marco couldn't help but laugh a little.

"Guess this answers the question of where hoodie number five went." Marco said, putting on the hoodie but leaving it unzipped, he was in the Underworld after all.

"Well this is nice and all, but what I need was what was in the hoodie." Marco said.

"Huh, what do mean?" Tammy asked, tilting her head to the side.

"Chalk, I had chalk in my other hoodie. You wouldn't happen to have any, do you?" Marco said.

"Ohhhh... No. I don't." Tammy said with a frown.

"Hmm... Well do you have anything I could write on the floor with?" Marco asked instead.

"Hmmm... Let me think." Tammy said, tapping her chin in thought.

"Oh! Yeah, hold on let me check something." Tammy said, walking back to her closet and once again rummaging and tossing stuff out, Marco was half tempted to organize the closet for her, but he still had class later.

"Aha!" Tammy proclaimed, holding up a black spray can.

"Is... Is that silly string?" Marco asked, confused.

"It's not silly if we use it seriously!" Tammy declared.

"Okay... So it's serious string then." Marco joked, earning a light punch from Tammy.

"Okay, okay, no more jokes." Marco said with a soft chuckle, rubbing his shoulder where he got punched.

And taking the can from from Tammy, Marco sat crossed leg on the floor, with Tammy kneeling across from him, the jewelry box in front of him and slowly he drew a magic circle, a pentacle to be precise, a five pointed star within a circle, with the box in center of it, and taking in a deep breath, Marco began to focus and center himself, biting back the comment about how the room smells of lavender.

"Hmm..." Marco said, eyeing his work.

"What? What's wrong?" Tammy asked confused.

"Oh, I was just thinking about how your room smells of lavender..." Marco blurted out before he could stop himself, earning another punch from Tammy.

" _Mmmmmnnnn_ I thought you were gonna help me not criticize my room..." She said with a pout.

" _Sigh..._ Sorry, I couldn't help myself, I'll be serious now, okay?" Marco said, reaching forward and gently patting her head.

"... Okay." She said reluctantly.

"Now, do you have a small knife?" Marco asked.

"Huh? What for?" Tammy asked.

"I need a drop of my blood to get this to work." Marco answered.

"Really? Does it have to be yours?" She asked.

"Hmm... No, not really." Marco said.

"Oh, then let's just use my blood then." Tammy suggested.

"No." Marco replied.

"But I was the one who asked for help, let me just..." She began, but Marco reached forward and gripped her wrist.

"Tammy. No. We're using my blood. End of story, okay? I don't wanna see you hurt, and I'm used to it anyways." Marco said with a smile.

"Okay... But I don't have a knife, let me just..." Tammy said, as she took Marco's hand, and bit his finger, giving it a small cut, a small blush on her face as she did so.

And at this Marco flinched a little, then he took his finger and dripped a couple of drops of his blood on the circle, and as it made contact with the symbol a small audible hum was heard as an invisible wall of arcane energy sprung up around the circle.

Then Marco stuck his finger inside his own mouth to stop the bleeding, completely forgetting that it was in Tammy's mouth not two seconds ago, making the demon blush at their indirect kiss.

"Dat thould do it" Marco mumbled.

"Oh, sorry, I meant that that should do it." Marco repeated, this time taking his finger out of his mouth, trailing a line of spit from his mouth to his finger, which he hurriedly wiped on his pants.

"Now what?" Tammy asked, trying to hide the blush on her face.

"Now the magic happens." Marco said with a grin, as he whispered a few words under his breath, waving his hand across himself, careful not to break the connection of the circle since it was sensitive to physical touch after all, and then very slowly, small blue particles rose from the silly string pentacle drawing and formed the shape of an arrow. And arrow that was spinning around like a drunk ballerina.

"Okay, that's odd. Did you lose it in a different dimension?" Marco asked.

"Oh! Maybe I did." Tammy said, excitedly.

And like that they retraced Tammy's steps throughout multiple dimensions with the arrow leading them, and ending up in Quest Buy, with absolutely no luck in finding the collar.

" _Sigh..._ I'm sorry I wasted your time Marco. I guess I'll just never see that collar again." Tammy said sadly.

"No... I should be the one who's sorry, if only I know how to look across dimensions... And hey, we still have time, I'm sure we'll find it." Marco said.

"Marco, it's already three in the morning, you still have class later." Tammy said.

"Exactly, **later** , so I still have time to help." Marco retorted.

And at this Tammy smiled up at him.

"Thanks Mar..." Tammy began, but she suddenly clutched her head, and grit her teeth in pain.

" _Aaaaaarrggghhhhhh_ " Tammy yelled, now visibly shaking in pain.

"Tammy? What's wrong!?" Marco asked desperately, clutching her shoulders as he did.

"Summ... oning... Me... _Ghhhhh..._ " Tammy asked, still clutching her head, and then, a pillar of flame erupted beneath her and Marco.

Opening his eyes, Marco found himself in the middle of a forest.

"Huh? Where are we?" Marco asked, however Tammy was no longer with him, he was alone.

"Tammy? Where are you? Tammy??" Marco called out, looking around him for any sign of her, and that's when he heard an explosion nearby.

Rushing towards the sound, Marco found himself at the edge of the forest in an open field, where a group of people was surroundings Tammy, they all wore hooded robes so Marco wasn't able to tell if they were men or women.

And it seems that Tammy was currently inside a magic circle, trapped and enraged.

" **You really think you can keep me here? Y'all must be a special kind of stupid**." She growled at them.

And one of the robed figures stepped forward, and muttered something under his breath, and soon others followed suit, stepping forward and joining the chant.

"This can't be good." Marco whispered to himself, he wasn't just gonna let them do whatever they want to his friend.

"Oy! Let my friend go!" He shouted at them, to no effect, as they paid him no mind.

"Hey! I said. Let. My friend. Go!" Marco yelled again, running at one of the robed figures and drop kicking him, knocking him down, making all the other ones turn to look at him.

"Oh, so now you pay attention to me?" He snapped at them, and immediately they all raised their hands and arcane energy began building up in the palm of their hands.

"Uh oh..." Marco said, but much to his surprise they directed that energy to the demon they trapped, and almost immediately, chains of lightning shot out from their hands and wrapped around Tammy, making her cry out in pain.

Big mistake.

After the chains wrapped around Tammy, two of the hooded figures were immediately blown clear out of open field, both slamming into a tree and falling down, out cold.

Seeing this, the cultists all turned around, still keeping up the restraining spell, they saw the boy in the red hoodie, the staff in his hand was smoking, the runes carved along the wood was blazing with blue light, and just the smallest hint of a sulfurous smell was hanging in the air.

"I said. **Let. Her. GO**!" He roared, and holding his staff like a baseball bat, he slammed it to the side of one of the cultists, the attack amplified by an arcane shockwave that knocked the cultist over the treeline and deep into the forest, the nearest two cultists were staggered by the shockwave, and not missing a beat, Marco used his staff to vault into one of the cultists, landing a kick right across his face, and turning around to the other cultist, Marco extended his hand out, and three bolts of arcane energy shot out of palm and slammed into the cultist, knocking him out.

By now the other cultists have finally recognized him as a threat, and three of them turned towards him and shot three continuous bolts of lightning at the boy, and upon seeing this Marco raised his left arm, and bracing it with his right hand, he summoned up a half dome shield that intercepted the attacks, glowing blue and shooting off sparks where the spells hit the shield.

All the while, the five remaining cultist were still keeping up the restraining spell on the demon, and ever so slowly, Tammy grew weaker and weaker, fighting the spell less and less, all while the head cultist laughed maniacally.

"Dammit. I can't keep this up, I need to help Tam..." Marco began, but upon hearing the crazed laugh, he turned to see that Tammy was growing weaker by the second, and Marco's composure faltered for a moment, his shield flickering on and off for a moment, before fully dissipating, and then exploding to life as an even bigger shield, this time however it was blazing red, and all at once the shield sputtered out. And a huge fireball exploded under the three cultists, knocking them away.

Looking at the state his friend was in, Marco tightened his grip on his staff, the once blue runes on it were now turning fiery red, and the smell of sulfur was now heavy in the air. And with one heavy swing, Marco slammed his staff into the ground, shooting off an burst of fire in a line that streaked through the ground, and exploded at the edge of the magic circle, disrupting the arcane connection and interrupting whatever ritual they were doing, causing the cultists there to shout out in anger.

They all turned towards the boy and as one they gathered arcane energies around themselves and shot him with various spells, one shot a fireball at him, while another one shot a stream of ice and biting cold at him, two shot lighting at him, and the cultists leader shot a concentration of dark purple energy, an eldritch blast, at the boy.

Slamming his staff in front of him, Marco brought up another shield in front of him, this time in the shape of a wedge, transferring some of the excess energy to the side of him.

And as their barrage ended Marco countered with a fireball of his own, that exploded in front of the cultists, knocking up a cloud of dust, dirt and grass, falling to his knees, exhaustion and lack of sleep catching up to him.

Breathing heavily now, Marco looks up and sees the leader of the cultists smiling down at him, muttering something in a language Marco couldn't understand, pushing himself off the ground, Marco found that he was unable to support himself and once again fell to his knees, upon seeing this the cultist leader laughed out loud before taking out a curved ritualistic dagger from within his cloak, and raising it up just before he brought it down, aiming for the boy's glaring face.

And just as the blade was arching down, someone gripped the cultist's hand, and turning around he found out that it was the demon they tried subjugating early, and she was pissed.

Picking up the cultist like he was a mere child, Tammy threw him down behind her, where a stone coffin swallowed him whole and then slowly sank beneath the ground.

"I'll deal with you later." She said quietly, before turning around and squeezing Marco into a hug.

"I'm so sorry I dragged you into this. Are you okay?" She asked him.

"Heh... Look, we found your thing." Marco said groggily, pointing at collar where the magic circle Tammy was trapped in early was.

"Yay!" Tammy cheered happily, squeezing Marco tighter when she saw what he was pointing too.

"Can't... Breathe... Here..." Marco said.

"Oh, sorry..." Tammy said meekly, reluctantly releasing him from her hug.

~~~~~~~~~~~

"Are you sure you'll be alright?" Tammy asked again as the flames died down, they were now in Marco's room, that was the tenth time she repeated that question.

"Yes Tammy, I just need sleep and I'll be better." Marco said, collapsing on his bed and immediately passing out.

At this Tammy couldn't help whimper worriedly for her friend.

"Don't worry, he'll be fine." A voice said, startling the demon.

"Wha? Who's there!" Tammy said, searching for the source of the voice.

"Relax Tam, it's me! Temmie!" Temmie said cheerily, hovering into view.

"Oh, hey Tem. You said he'll be fine but..." Tammy began.

"But what?" Temmie asked.

"Isn't there anything I can do?" Tammy asked.

"Oh, actually there is!" Temmie said, her twin points of eyelight twinkling cheerily as she hovered closer to the demon and whispered into her ear, making Tammy blush at what she said.

"You're sure this'll help him?" Tammy asked.

"Absolutely! You're full of magicky goodness, and Marco here is tapped out, being close to him will help him absorb some of that." Temmie explained.

"...ok fine." Tammy said reluctantly, climbing into Marco's bed and lying down just inches from him.

"Oh come on, you've gotta be closer than that." Temmie said.

"What? We're already pretty close here!" Tammy said.

"Yeah, and I'm telling you, you need to be closer." Temmie said.

"Fine..." Tammy said, scooting even closer to Marco.

"Hmmm... trying hugging him." Temmie suggested, and Tammy complied, a blush on her face as she stared at Marco's sleeping face.

"Perfect! Now go to sleep." Temmie said, settling back down on Marco's desk as her eyelights blinked off.

 **And done! What do you guys think? They're all snippets from future chapters of the stories, I tried to make them as none spoilery as I could!**

 **Also yes, Tammy here, in both stories is Tom's sister. A genderbent Tom is just... Yeah... /**


	24. I'm weak I'm sorry

There's no easy way to say this, but I'm in a massive slump at the moment. There's just... So much going on right now with my life and it's eating away at what's left of my decrepit sanity.

So yeah. Life's in a downward spiral at the moment, and trust me I'd give anything, ANYTHING, to be able to do this full time, but life has other plans (mainly kicking me down).

So I apologize but everything is, until further notice, going to be horribly delayed (not a hiatus, Writing and music is what's keeping me from falling apart, so I'll keep at it as best I can.)

Again, I'm sorry. But there's nothing I could do.


	25. Pain of the Past

**Chapter 10**

 **Pain of the Past.**

Wilhaim slowly and silently made his way out of the room, giving the distressed teens their privacy.

" _Sigh..._ Hope you work out your problems kid..." Wilhaim said quietly, looking at the closed door in front of him, he then began stretching till a small _pop_ was heard from his back.

" _Ughhhhh..._ _mein rücken..._ " He depressedly groaned as he let out a tired sigh.

"And I hope to the gods that those girls learn to control their temper." He added grumpily as he began rubbing his back, just as Fredrik and Elizabeth walked up to him.

"Hey there Wil, how're the kids?" Elizabeth asked.

"Good? Could be better I guess." Wilhaim answered with a tired shrug.

"Still sore from being beaten up by a bunch of kids?" Fredrik asked, a grin on his face as he eyed the Wil's tired state.

"Uh... **Yeah!** And you would be too if a bunch of damn kids knocked you **through a building!** " Wilhaim retorted.

"Relax, I'm joking, but seriously though, are they alright? For a moment there they thought you killed the boy, I thought so too, honestly, and I'm pretty sure they're uh... _protective_ of the boy and personally, I don't think Kelly can handle it if another person she's attached to, dies in front of her, she's lost enough already." Fredrik said, a pained expression on his face.

"...Yeah, well luckily the boy's one damn tenacious idiot." Wilhaim said with a sigh, shaking his head.

"What do you mean?" Elizabeth asked, crossing her arms as she raised a brow.

"He's... Well he... _Sigh..._ Look. The spell I _accidentally_ undid on him was a numbing spell, you know, the one we use whenever we're sore from training, working, fighting what have you, but the thing is, it was wound over and over and over again all over his body, that's why I didn't recognize it until it was too late." Wilhaim said, a somber expression growing on his face.

"He... He was training to the point that his bones may very well have been shattered if he continued it, he wound that spell ten, twenty, hell maybe even thirty times around himself just to make sure he wouldn't pass out from the pain, and after **that** he had a hydra knock him through a building and somehow he's still alive, sure he had runic gear and all, but still..." Wilhaim trailed off, a frown on his face.

"Gods..." Fredrik said quietly, while Elizabeth had a shocked look upon hearing the revelation.

"I know right?" Wilhaim said.

"Well, I'm pretty sure he's ok now, thanks to me that is, but I think he's still being chewed out in there" Wilhaim added, pointing a thumb behind him.

"I'm gonna go talk to him." Elizabeth said, walking up to the door, only to have Wilhaim grab her shoulder.

"Are you sure? I think it's best if they talk it out for a bit." Wilhaim said.

"Okay, maybe you're right... But I'm still gonna talk to him." Elizabeth said, quickly shrugging off Wil's hand and barging into the room.

"... Does she do that a lot?" Wilhaim asked, looking at Fredrik who currently had his face in the palm of his hand as he slowly shook his head, groaning as he did so.

Abruptly shoving the door open Elizabeth marched into the room to find the kids in a sprawled mess on the bed, seems like she startled them a little with her entrance.

"Oh... Sorry, did I interrupt?" She asked.

"No." Marco answered.

"Yes." Janna said, immediately after Marco answered, earning an annoyed glare from the boy.

"Heh, well you can continue it later, I'm going to need a moment with Marco, please." Elizabeth said, a small smile on her face as she said so.

"Umm... Okay." Star said reluctantly, looking back and forth from Marco to Elizabeth and back again before finally standing up and walking out of the room, followed by the other girls.

"Okay... And uh... What did you ne..." Marco began, but a slam from Elizabeth shut him up.

Holding his cheek with his hand, Marco looked up to her with disbelief and confusion in his eyes.

"Wha..." Marco began, but Elizabeth immediately hugged him, confusing him even further.

"Um... What?" He said.

"Sorry Marco. But you're an idiot. Also that was for worrying me and everyone else." Elizabeth said, pulling away from the hug.

" _Sigh..._ Yeah, I deserved that." Marco said with a small sad smile.

"But really, you're an idiot. Why would you do that to yourself!?" Elizabeth asked, exasperated.

"Do wha-" Marco began, but a stern glare from Elizabeth forced his mouth shut.

"You know full well what I mean Marco." She said her death glare ever trained in the teen.

"Okay, look. I just wanted to be stronger okay? I need to be able to keep them safe, to protect them." Marco answered, crossing his arms as he did so.

"What? Aren't you plenty strong already? You managed to cut some of that hydra's heads off on your own remember? Hell, half the guild is **still** scared of you ever since _The_ _lecture_. And I'm pretty sure I saw you all lightningy when we fought that overgrown lizard." Elizabeth said with a small laugh.

"Heh... Yeah, but I won't rely on something like that... I can't. These... _powers_ that I can't understand, and the ones that I know all too well... It's too dangerous." Marco said, shaking his head.

"I just need to be better okay? I need to get stronger! For them..." Marco added, a somber expression on his face.

" _Sigh..._ Don't sell yourself short, kid. If you're thinking like **that,** then trust me, you're plenty strong already. And those girls are a tough bunch themselves!" Elizabeth said, to which Marco simply sighed and kept quiet.

"Look kid. You gotta believe in them okay? And more importantly you gotta believe in yourself, and even if you don't believe in yourself, those girls do! And so do I. They know you'll do anything you can to protect them, but you gotta make sure you don't kill yourself doing stupid stuff like this!" Elizabeth said, haplessly gesturing at Marco.

"...You just gestured to _all_ of me." Marco said, looking up at her with an amused smirk.

"That's because ALL of you is being stupid right now." Elizabeth said, mirroring the smirk on Marco's face.

"Yeah, fair enough, maybe I was being a little paranoid and... stupid, just a little though." Marco jokingly said, laughing softly at himself.

"I'm glad that we've established that. Now come on, let's go meet up with the oth..." Elizabeth began, but the door suddenly, and quite literally flew off its hinges and landed a couple of feet away from the doorframe, startling Marco into jumping off the bed and into a fighting position and making Elizabeth summon her spider familiar Marco saw earlier and an owl familiar he hasn't seen yet, both ready to lash out at the attacker.

Only to have Grog step through the doorframe, a wide and happy smile on his face.

"Marco!" He yelled, rushing over to crush him in a massive hug the Johansens would've been proud of.

"Grog... Air... Please... _Guhhh_ " Marco struggled to say, but returning the hug nonetheless.

"Grog! What did we say about kicking down doors!?" Elizabeth said angrily, her hands on her hips as she glared at the goliath, her two familiars dissipating away.

"Oh... Uh... Sorry, I just wanted to see Marco again, I heard he was better." Grog said apologetically.

" _Sigh..._ It's okay Grog, but this better be the last time you do this, okay?" Elizabeth said, her expression softening.

"Um... Grog, I know you like hugs and all, but could you let me go now?" Marco asked, still being suffocated in a hug.

"Oh right. Sorry." He said, letting Marco go.

"Oh and I almost forgot! There's a gonna be a surprise!" Grog said happily.

"Surprise? What surprise?" Marco asked.

"Well..." Grog began.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"A bathhouse?" Marco said inquisitively, looking up at the fairly simple looking building, of deeply dark blue colored wood, and despite its simple looking exterior it was a fairly sizeable building.

"Yes. A good bath always helps after a battle, and I'm pretty sure we could use one after fight we've been through." Percival said.

"Okay... But why didn't you guys just go here when I was out cold earlier?" Marco asked, and although he wasn't out for too long, it was already late afternoon, with the sun about to set in an hour or so, so he couldn't help but wonder why they didn't just go earlier.

"Hm... I dunno, never really came to mind until they told us you were finally awake." Percival answered, pointing his thumb towards Star and the girls who were chatting with Keyleth and Trinket, while Elizabeth and Fredrik were straying behind the group, seemingly discussing something.

"Fair enough, but where's Brann? He coming later or..." Marco drawled, fishing for an answer, only to get a casual shrug from Percival, turning to Grog with a raised brow, the goliath simply tapped his chin in thought before answering:

"Oh! He said he was going to be preparing something for later. I don't think he'll join us." Grog said after a while.

"Hmmm... Well let's go on then." Marco said, eager to soak his still sore body in the warmth of the bath.

"Of course!" Percival said, opening the double wooden doors with a flourish and holding it open for the girls.

And immediately upon entering the building, the thick and heavy smell of herbs and a tiniest hint of a medicinesq smell assaulted their senses.

Placed right on the sides of the hallway near the door were two lowlight plants, along the ceiling were various hanging pots that held even more plants and some flowers that seemed to contribute to the smell and oddly enough the combination of the simple interior design with the multitude plants and the herbal smell, gave the place a very relaxing atmosphere, and Marco could tell Star, Janna and Jackie thought so too, Kelly however seemed desensitized to the effect but still looked relaxed and a little eager, she must've been here before, Marco thought.

"Aahhhhhh... Finally, some much needed RnR." Fredrik said, taking in a deep breath before knocking on the countertop of the reception desk, and not a minute later a woman with black hair pulled up in a bun, wearing, oddly enough, a traditional chinese style dress, or at least it looked like one, Marco wasn't exactly sure.

"Hello, again. It's always a pleasure to see repeat customers, and... a few new faces." She greeted them, a soft smile on her face.

"Of course, this is the best bathhouse in this town." Percival said, leaning his elbow on the counter and flashing the woman a smile.

"No Percival, I _still_ won't go out with you." She said calmly, with practiced ease and a small smile on her face.

"I can however set you all up with a bath." She added, ignoring Percival as he slumped off the counter depressedly.

"That would be wonderful." Fredrik answered, also ignoring Percival as Grog comforted the half elf.

"Okay, so same thing as always? Separated open air bath with refreshments right?" She asked.

"Yup!" Fredrik answered.

"Very well, changing rooms are to the left for you boys, and for the ladies, it's to the right." She said, gesturing to two hallways opposite each other.

"Thank you." Fredrik said, handing her a couple of gold coins.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Ahhhhhhhhh, this is the life." Percival said with a satisfied sigh as he sank deeper into the warm water.

The others were also enjoying the warmth of the water, but were less vocal about it and choose to enjoy it in solemn silence, they were all sitting along the edges, content expressions on all of their faces.

They were now fully enjoying the bath, which was essentially a swimming pool sized hole with stairs for sitting, going down into the water, and filled to the brim with warm, soothing herb infused water. It was strikingly similar to the hot springs of Japan, not that Marco's ever been there but he's seen some (rather embarrassing) pictures of his parents relaxing in the hot springs from the time his parents went to Japan on one of their unplanned vacations.

He smiled at the memory, his parents' antics were something he always found annoying, but it was what defined them and he loved them for it.

However his smile prompted Percival to grin at the teen.

"Oh? Thinking about something pleasant are we?" Percival asked, the undertone of his question going unnoticed.

"Yeah..." Marco answered with a satisfied sigh, sinking deeper into the bath, falling for the trap that the half elf placed.

"Yeah, I remember fantasizing about my friends too. Which one is your favorite?" Percival asked, a massive shit-eating grin on his face.

Which immediately caused Marco to turn into stuttering, blushing mess.

"That wasn't... I didn't... No, no, no, no! I was... I just... I was... Gahhh!" Marco said, his ability to form sentences hindered by his embarrassment.

"Relaaaaaax, it's natural to think about stuff like that. You're all of age aren't ya? So tell me who's your favorite?" Percival said, his teasing was unrelenting, even with Marco submerging half his face to hide his embarrassment, much to the amusement of Grog, Fredrik and Wilhaim.

"Or maaaaaaybe you don't have a favorite, they're all precious to you aren't they? Every. Single. Part of them. Is precious to you right?" He said, and the guys were now all openly chuckling at Marco.

And although what he said wasn't wrong, the way he said it meant that he meant something else, causing the teen to blush uncontrollably.

"Come on Marco, admit it. They're all lovely ladies, I'm sure there're like at **least** five different guys out there who'll gladly take them _off your hands_ if you don't _claim_ them." And as soon as he said that, the flushed and embarrassed expression on Marco's face gave way to one of deep-seated anger.

However by this time Percival had gotten too deep on his tirade of teasing Marco that he completely missed the fact that Wilhaim and Fredrik were gesturing for him to shut up.

He wasn't able to see that Marco had somehow appeared in front of him, punched him square in the face and had grabbed his throat. It was only then, when Marco had Percy's throat in a death grip that he realized what happened.

"Watch. Your. Words. Percival." Marco snarled out.

"Ghhh... Yea, sorry." He croaked out.

Releasing the half elf with a sigh, Marco looked down at his hands with a frown.

 _'Why the heck did I do that?'_ he thought to himself.

But he was quickly snapped out of his thoughts when he heard soft giggling coming form... Somewhere.

"Huh?" Marco said, looking around the bath, but he didn't find where the giggles came from... And then he looked up.

And there perched on the wall dividing the women's bath from the men's, was Keyleth, eyeing him up like a cat does a mouse, a small smile on her lips and a twinkle in her eyes.

Marco's immediate response was to scream.

His second response was to pick up the towel he accidentally dropped and rewrap it around himself.

"What the hell Keyleth!" He yelled.

"Oh don't mind me Marco, I'm just... Enjoying the show." She purred. She actually purred.

And then Marco died from embarrassment.

Well not really. He did faint though.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I can't believe you did that Keyleth." Elizabeth said, reprimanding her friend with a shake of her head as they walked out of the bath.

"I can't believe I didn't think about that." Janna grumbled, her arms crossed in front of her and a pout in her lips.

"Oh come now, it was all in good fun." She said airily, a cheshire cat smile on her face.

"What part of that was fun!" Marco said, fuming.

"First there was that tomato impression you did, then you did that awesome punch, and theeeeeeeen~" She said, dragging the last word out while she slowly lowered her gaze to Marco's crotch, making the teen blush once again.

"Please stop." Marco said desperately, his face red as his hoodie and his hands trying to cover his body from Keyleth's gaze.

"Hmmmm nah." She said, the smile still on her face.

"Keyleth. Seriously. Stop." Fredrik deadpanned.

"Yeah. That's a little... Creepy." Grog said.

"Oh come on! Not like I can't make a move on him. He's legal now!" She said exasperatedly, making Marco blush and prompting the girls to glare at her.

"Hey!"

"What..."

"No!"

They all said at once, making everyone glance nervously at the teens, and making Keyleth giggle.

"Looks like I've got some competition." Keyleth said with a grin.

"Hey Mar-" Keyleth began, but as she turned to look at the teen she saw that he walked on ahead, his head low and his hands stuffed into his pockets.

"Oh... Oh no... What happened?" Elizabeth asked, looking at the men with a questioning look, not at an angry look, just... One demanding an answer.

"It was my fault. I was teasing him and-" Percival began confessing, but a hand on his shoulder made him stop.

"No... This is something else." Grog said.

"Let him think. Comfort him later." Grog added, with a soft pointed look at the girls who were about to rush to Marco's side.

Now Grog wasn't the most intelligent man... Er, Goliath around, far from it. But he was people smart, he picked up on feelings better than most mind readers can read minds, and although he usually forgoes this ability and just offers ale as comfort most of the time, he cares for this crew, they were his family. And Marco became part of it not too long ago.

So with a heavy sigh, Fredrik looked at the girls and nodded his head, and softly said:

"it'll be alright, let's give him a moment."

And reluctantly, the girls nodded their heads and simply kept pace a little ways behind him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

He snapped.

He never snaps. At least not often.

But his friend went too far. That he knew, and at least he didn't hurt him. Not really anyway, Percy was tough.

But that wasn't what got him down.

He remembered.

He remembered the _lesson_ he taught the adventurers of the guild, they were being selfish, greedy, and stupid. Very. Very. Stupid.

They needed to learn. They needed to know what would happen if they ignored the people who were seeking help.

They needed to _see_. So he showed them. Brutality. Loss. Hopelessness. Despair. Pain. Such are the consequences of ignorance and pride, and sometimes, when fate just seemed especially cruel... those things... just... Happen, for no explicit reason.

The lesson was harsh, the... Things, they've seen would scar them and experienced adventurers they may be, what they saw would haunt them forever.

He should know.

It was his own memories that he showed them.

He lived through the hell that they merely glimpsed.

And, magical memory wipe or no, it still hurt.

Like a knife through his heart.

And out of nowhere a rift opened up in front of him, releasing magical energies and sparks as it opened up.

And just as fast as it opened, it swallowed Marco whole right before fizzing out of existence.

It took him.

Him and four girls.

The rest of them stared at the spot where the portal was. At a complete loss of words.

"What the shit!??" Grog supplied, summing up the group's thoughts.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Marco found himself in an odd, but familiar dimension.

Said dimension had clocks strewn about everywhere, on the ground, floating in the rivers, and oddly enough melting on trees.

He'd been here with Star once, that was one heck of a day for him, especially since that day lasted 60 hours, and he'd also been here on his own for a few times, those times weren't as fun.

See, for some of Hekapoo's challenges she had told Marco to take over some of her work with Omnitraxsus Prime. It usually just involved investigating and then closing rifts in space-time, it was easy enough...

But sometimes, there are things that pass through said rifts in space-time, things that shouldn't be, things that don't belong in this plane of existence, things that shouldn't even exist.

Now usually Omni had someone else to take care of these problems for him, but at times that person was either busy or unavailable, if so, he'd phone Hekapoo and ask for help, (Rhombulus was too reckless), and Hekapoo in turn outsourced the problem to Marco.

With a heavy sigh Marco shook his head at the memories and walked on as if nothing happened, he knew he could just call out to Omni if he needed help, and there's also his dimensional scissors that he painstakingly suffered for.

But it was worth it, even if he can't remember most of it he knew he appreciated and treasured his time in Hekapoo's dimension, even the bad ones, now he had a pair of scissors that cut through the very fabric of reality as a toy, a song in his heart written by time, experience, and pain, and not to mention one hell of a great friend.

Hekapoo.

Now that name invokes so much from so many, fear, anger, annoyance, awe, excitement, respect.

And rightfully so, she's amazing, and that's an understatement.

She was a great, albeit annoying, friend and comrade to Marco, even if she was the one throwing him to the sharks Marco still respected her. Heck, he might even adore her.

And all of a sudden, the sound of a blaring horn from a speeding car that left flames marks where it's tires touched the ground, brought Marco out of his stupor, diving to the side Marco narrowly avoided being road kill.

Right. The time dimension was one dangerous and weirdly random place.

And just as Marco stood up he had to dodge out of the way of a woman in a yellow skin tight bodysuit that was running incredibly fast.

"Don't worry loves, the cavalry's here!" She shouted, right before vanishing from existence.

"Okay... That was weird." Marco said to himself as he walked on, trying not to think about the his past.

And as he walked, he saw some more odd things, for one he saw a skeleton with a chainsaw where its right hand should be, sprawled out in front of a cave, then there a robot singing about tacos (which were falling from the sky), then there was the blue... Phone booth? Sticking out of the ground randomly.

It was a nice walk despite the weird distractions, but they helped take his mind away from his thoughts, overall it helped him settle his nerves a great deal, the walk itself probably took half an hour, but knowing where he was, Marco knew better.

And with a soft sigh, Marco called out:

"Omni! I'm good now, thanks." Marco called out.

And then, Omni's huge form rose in front of Marco, smiling fondly at the human.

"Well, I'm glad you're alright. And apologies for the Rift." He said.

"No problem, I know you can't control those" Marco replied, waving off the concern.

"Heh, yeah. Well anyway, your friends are waiting for you here." He said, much to Marco's surprise.

"Don't worry they're somewhere safe." Omni added when Marco's face paled at his words.

And with a snap of Omni's finger, Marco found himself at the end of a long hallway that was filled with monitors that were once showing something before fizzing into static, then it play something that at first made Marco frown, then... He smiled.

"Heh... This memory huh?" He said.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Star, Janna, Jackie and Kelly found themselves in a weird dimension.

Which was saying a lot given what they've already experienced.

There seemed to be clocks melting on the grounds, and clocks floating in the sky, and for some reason a bathtub was sticking halfway out of the ground a little ways to the side of them.

But before they could voice their thoughts, and questions as to where they were, a certain magical princess filled them in.

"This is Father Time's dimension!" Star exclaimed.

And with that Star explained.

"And yeah, after that time was fixed and Marco wasn't late for the quiz!" Star finished.

"Damn..." Janna said, compiling all their thoughts in one word.

"Yeah... Damn." Jackie agreed.

And Kelly simply giggled.

"Anyway, where's Marco?" Star said, looking around them in worry with her finger on her lips.

" **I can answer that princess."** A booming voice said.

And looking up the girls saw a giant skull with swords fashioned into makeshift horns atop it's head, floating in the void of space.

"Omni?" Star inquired.

"Yes, hello princess." Omni said cheerily.

"Sorry about this, but a rift opened up and pulled you in, I'll fix this though don't worry." Omni added.

"And who is this Star?" Jackie asked.

"Oh, he's Omni, he helped me with math once." Star said, further confusing her friends.

"Anyway, let me place you girls somewhere (relatively) safe for the _time being_ , while I look for the boy." He said picking them up and chuckling at his little wordplay.

And just like that the world seemed to flip for a moment, and then Omni let them down, only this time they were in a completely different place, it was a hallway whose walls were absolutely filled with monitors that flickered with events from the past, present, and presumably the future.

As the girls looked up they saw a roof where Omni's giant hand once was.

"Ok, that was weird..." Jackie said, and just as she said that long cable with an eyeball attached to it descended from... Somewhere, and it looked at Star, as it did, the monitors all flickered onto a scene of little Star bouncing up and down as she clapped and giggled while a royal guard showed her how to snap a neck.

"Awwww... I was soooooooo cyyyyuute!" Star exclaimed.

"I wish I saw this the last time me and Marco were here." She added, however at the mention of Marco's name the eye snapped towards Janna and Jackie, this time the monitors showed Echo Creek park where little Janna and little Jackie were a sprawled mess on the grass giggling and laughing at each other, they both had helmets on and their skateboards were a little ways away from them.

And just then a small slightly squeaky voice called out to them.

And immediately little Janna and little Jackie's faces lit up, a faint blush on both their cheeks. Only for that happy expression to give way to confusion when a figure's shadow stalked up from behind them.

And then the monitors fizzled out, the eye having been shoved away by Jackie.

"S-sorry, bad memory..." Jackie said, looking down at the ground, all the while Janna was looking at Jackie with narrowed eyes and a small scowl.

However, at the mention of 'bad memory' the eye had snapped towards Kelly.

This time the monitors showed them something they felt they shouldn't have seen.

On the screen was a wooden caravan driven by four horses, and a band of five adventurers were making their way across a barren canyon, red and brown rock formations jutting out of the ground around them.

Three of the adventurers were covered in full plate armor, despite the heat, covering their entire appearance behind the metal, two of them were tall bordering around six feet, one of them was noticeably shorter and stockier, a dwarf.

The other two adventurers were more sensibly, albeit eccentrically, dressed.

They both wore some semblance of brown studded leather armor, one of them had a long fluffy red scarf wrapped around her neck, her dark colored hair which was considerably fluffier than the scarf was tied in a loose ponytail and reached her lower back. And the other one had scale mail on his shoulder and down his arm ending just above the elbow and leaving the lower parts of his arm exposed, protected only by leather bracers, his curly aquamarine hair was fluttering with the wind.

They were Kelly's parents.

And Kelly, the adorable little munchkin, was riding one of the horses, even being just six years old her large aquamarine hair was already long enough to cover her entirely.

She was laughing out loud, her voice, although soft was echoing around the canyon lifting the spirits of the adventuring band around her, especially her parents.

And then the caravan exploded, sending splinters flying everywhere as the flames roared in the caravan's remains, the coachman and who or whatever was inside the caravan didn't survive. The adventurers around it were knocked away, as was Kelly.

From where the caravan once stood was a cackling blue portal, spitting out arcs of arcane energy, and from it out floated some... Thing, looking like a huge ball of sickly green muscle, like some evil demented meatball, atop the being were seven long finger like stalks, and on these stalks were eyes, each glowing a different character color. But that wasn't all, in its front was another much bigger eye, and right bellow that was a massive maw filled with rows, upon rows of jagged teeth, spittle dripping down the side of its mouth as a malicious, evil sound emanated from its mouth. It was laughing.

They were facing a beholder.

Then, the screens fizzled out, then it showed a series of images, each more horrifying than the last.

 _Static._

They attacked, but none of their attacks hit, and those that did didn't do much.

 _Static._

The beholder had petrified one of the armored men, right before firing a swirling beam of black eldritch energy from one of its many eyes straight through the petrified man's chest, killing him instantly.

 _Static._

The other armored man was simply disintegrated into nothingness.

 _Static._

The dwarf was chewed up and spat back out. Dead.

 _Static._

Kelly's dad blocked a beam from one of its eyes as he shoved his wife out of the way, the beam cut through his sword and into his chest. Blasting straight through his heart. Killing him.

 _Static._

The entire place was decimated, like a bomb had gone off, in the center was Kelly's mother, her face a mask of despair and pure, unbridled rage. Red veins of power spread throughout her body, though only the ones on her face were visible, and on her back were two fiery wings billowing outwards.

 _Static._

The beholder was on deaths door, half its eye stalks were burned off, black blood was dripping from its open maw and the various wounds along its circular body.

And Kelly's mom lay in front of it.

Dead.

 _Static._

The beholder turned.

It's malicious grin growing ever larger as it approached a small shivering, whimpering figure.

"Hah...Hah...Haaaaaah...Haha...Hahaha.. . HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" it cackled, black blood and spittle spewing from its mouth.

"Child... Come forth. Accept your fate." It said. It's voice low and soft, almost merciful.

Then the feed cut to black.

Kelly was in tears.

The other were speechless.

Not a second passed and they were in a group hug.

"Kelly..."

"I don't know what to say but.."

"We're here for..."

They all said at once, their words jumbling into an incoherent mess of support and care for their friend, enticing a small, sad laugh from the bushy haired teen.

"Its alright guys... And, really, thank you but... Things got better." She said quietly.

And before she could explain the monitors started up again.

Continuing from the same scene they left off of.

Star was all ready to blast the eye into pieces, Kelly was hurt enough.

Only to find that it wasn't in sight. It was gone.

They wanted to pry Kelly away, but were instead surprised to see that she... She was smiling?

"Look... It going to get better." She said softly.

And they watched.

The beholder was floating closer to Kelly's small form now.

It's massive eye trained on the small shaking figure.

Then out of nowhere a sword flew out and sunk into its side, prompting it to turn around...

Only to have the sword explode at its side.

The girls watched on in awe as a tall cloaked figure, their features hidden behind a long black cloak and a red hood, dashed for the unholy entity.

Throwing a punch into its massive eye, which simply bounced off the sensitive membrane.

Then it punched again and it even kicked the thing. But the blows dealt practically no damage.

Having enough of this, the beholder began charging up arcane energy in its eye.

Then the cloaked figure gripped the massive eye with both hands, and with a mighty roar ripped out half of the massive eyeball, while simultaneously tossing the beholder away, saving him from being splashed by the black blood.

Not giving it a chance to recover, he took the massive greatsword from his back launched himself at it.

And with one swing he cleaved the aberration in half.

Ending the nightmare.

With that, he flicked the blood away from his sword, and produced a crystal orb from within his hooded cloak, and brought it near his face, then as if he was about to shatter it he brought it up above his head and... He stopped.

He turned around and saw little Kelly clinging onto his leg, tears streaming down her face, and fear etched unto her features.

The figure immediately stuffed the orb back into his cloak, and knelt in front of little Kelly, placing his hand on top of her head, gently ruffling her hair.

He said something to her, and she shook her head and looked at the bodies around them.

The figure froze, then he stood up, looked around and walked to one of the bodies, picked something up and walked to another one, knelt, and picked something up again, then he made his way back to Kelly.

He knelt in from of her and began saying something, but the monitors had no sound.

And before they could ask what he was saying, Kelly began speaking:

"I'm sorry, but your parents are gone. They won't be coming back..."

She paused.

Little Kelly began crying, then she was embraced by the figure, making the grown up Kelly watching this blush.

Then she started talking again.

"They may not be here anymore... And I may not have known them... But I know they would have wanted you to live on, to be strong, to be happy. To live."

"I know I can't do much for you, but I can give you these." Kelly said, giving voice to the hooded figure, while she clenched the necklace under her shirt.

"These are your parents' right? Heh... You have your father's hair, I just know he'd proud of you, you're being so strong right now." Kelly said.

Then in a much softer and quieter voice she said.

"But I'm not doing anything Mister..." She said, tears halted as she looked at the trinkets in her hand.

"But you are. You're surviving. You're living. You're doing your parents proud." Kelly said in her normal voice.

"Thank you... Uh..."

"My name's..."

"Ark?"

"Yeah... Ark, yeah, sure why not."

And with that the screen fizzled out.

Three pairs of eyes were looking at Kelly now, and before they could ask, she said.

"He saved me that day. Took me to the next town where my aunt was."

"And on the way there, he taught me so much. How to fight, how fish, how light a campfire, how to cook, told me stories, held me til I slept, protected me. I owe him my life... I owe him more than my life actually." She said.

"He's my hero." She added quietly to herself.

Then there monitors flashed to life again.

This time showing a slideshow of images of what Kelly just said and so much more.

Ark was carrying her on his back as he walked, him making her laugh again and again, teaching her stuff, combining her hair with his hand, patting her head, holding her hand while they walked, carrying her as they ran away from a massive bear...

Then the last thing shown was them on the outskirts of a town, little Kelly was excited but something was off about Ark...

He seemed woozy.

Almost as if he was physically drained.

Then, very abruptly he dropped to his knees and coughed up blood, startling Kelly, who tried to help him, but with an agonized scream he got dragged right into a portal and not long after, a horse deposited Kelly's aunt Elizabeth beside her.

And with that the monitors fizzled out.

"...That was the last I've seen of him." Kelly said, a tear running down her face.

"Wow... Kelly. That's just... Wow." Star said, completely at a lost for words.

"Yeah... That's a lot of baggage there." Janna added.

"Hey.. We're here for you okay? And so is Marco." Jackie said.

"Speaking of which wher..." Janna began.

Then they heard feet shuffling and on the far side of the hallway, it was Marco he was running his hand across the various screens, muttering to himself, and didn't seem to notice the girls staring at him.

And right before Star shouted at him, a few words he was mumbling reached Kelly's ears:

"What have you been up to since then gumdrop?" Marco said quietly, but to Kelly it was as if he screamed it at her, and then she frozen, eyes glued on the teen.

"Marco!" Star yelled, tackling him into a hug before he could even look at her.

"Hey Star." Marco said with a chuckle, a small smile on his face as Janna and Jackie helped him and Star up.

"Well, seems we're all here, how about we go back n... Kelly? What's wrong?" Marco asked, having just noticed Kelly staring at him.

"It's you..." Kelly said softly, and even as she said it, she doubted that it could be true, it was impossible!

Ark saved her when she was a kid, and Marco was the same age as her! It'd be impossible for Marco to be him.

Couldn't it?

"Is... Is it really you?" Kelly asked, looking at Marco as if it was the first time she saw him.

"Uh... Kelly? What are you talking about?" Marco asked.

"No... Not Kelly. You called me a other name." She said, much to Marco's confusion, the other girls simply looked on in silence.

"I... I don't know what you're talking about Kelly, are you okay?" Marco asked.

"No! I'm not Kelly to you!" Kelly yelled out suddenly, startling Marco.

"Whu... Kelly, what are y-" Marco began, but as soon as he said "Kelly" again, a tear fell down her face, then another, and another.

And right before another one could fall Marco rushed up to her and wrapped her in hug.

"Hey, hey, it's ok, tell me what's wrong okay?" Marco said softly, running his hand up and down Kelly's back.

"Please... Say it... I've waited so long to hear you say it again... Please, Ark, say it..." She sobbed into Marco's shoulder.

And as soon as she said that name Marco froze.

It can't be... That's impossible, but then again Marco's been through much weirded things.

Then he took a closer look at Kelly's hair, and tightened his hug ever so slightly, and ran his fingers through Kelly's hair like he did so long ago when he was older and when Kelly was younger.

"Gumdrop?" Marco said quietly.

And as he said that Kelly squeezed him tighter and let out a shaky laugh.

"Y-yeah, it's me Ark... It's me." She said, a wide smile plastered across her face.

"Wow... That's uh... Wow..." Marco began.

"I don't... I don't know what to say gumdrop." Marco said..

This was definitely one of the weirder things he's been through.

"I don't either... This is just so weird.. But it's you... It's always been you!" Kelly exclaimed.

"Yeah... I guess so. I'm... Yeah. But I gotta say... I'm proud of you Kelly." Marco said, surprising Kelly enough to make her let go and look at him.

"Huh?" She said.

"I said I'm proud of you gumdrop. You grew up to be an amazing girl and an awesome adventurer! You did your parents proud, I know I am." Marco said with a wide grin.

Kelly's only response was a subdued nod and a small smile as she tired to hide her blush.

"You okay gumdrop?" Marco asked.

"Ye...yeah, thanks Marco... For everything." She said quietly.

"... You're welcome gumdrop. Anyway let's get out of here, this place is weird..." Marco began.

"But not as weird as that dimension of cats with human faces!" Marco and Star both finished at the same time, with the later giggling cutely, making Janna and Jackie snap out of their stupor.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"What the hell just happened!?" Grog demanded, staring at the place where the rift was.

After the Goliath's immediate confusion passed, it was very quickly replaced by anger and frustration.

Something had taken his comrades away, of course he wasn't happy.

"What in the hell was that!" He bellowed, glaring at the magic users, behind him.

Fredrik and Elizabeth exchanged a look while Wilhaim just shrugged.

"Ugh..." Fredrik began.

And out of nowhere a swirling blue portal opened up, from which Marco and the girls stepped out.

"Okay, so first things first, we gotta go fin-" Marco began, but he and the girls were immediately swept into another bone crushing from their Goliath friend.

"Gh... Nice to see you too Grog." Marco said when he was able to breathe again.

"What happened? Where'd you go?" Grog asked.

"Long story Grog." Marco said with a sigh, which confused the others there.

"Long story? You guys were gone for about a minute." Wilhaim said, his head titled to the side.

"A minute? We were gone for about thirty minutes." Jackie said.

"What? Weren't we gone for almost an hour?" Marco asked, his arms crossed.

"... Okay what?" Fredrik asked, confused.

"Wibbly wobbly timey wimey stuff." Marco exasperatedly said with a tired sigh, he'd been through way too much time altering adventures to last a lifetime..

"Right... I think we all could use a drink right about now." Grog said, however an early piercing yell from Elizabeth made them all turn their heads.

It seems Elizabeth had singled out Kelly when they came out of the portal, and whatever they were talking about seemed to have distressed her.

" What... " Elizabeth sad.

"Like I said auntie, Marco is A..." Kelly began.

"No no, I've heard you the first time sweetie... But... WHAT!?" Elizabeth all but yelled.

"Uh... What's the matter dear?" Fredrik asked.

"Well get this... He... Is Ark." Elizabeth said, pointing towards Marco.

"...What?" Fredrik said, confusion and disbelief written on his face.

"Exactly what I said!" Elizabeth said, throwing her arms up.

"Marco dear boy... Is... Is this true?" Fredrik asked, looking at Marco with a confused look that was almost comical.

"Ugh... Yeah, saved gumdrop on one of my jobs for Omni when I was on the trial. I'm guessing it was a time Rift that I fixed then..." Marco said with a small frown, as he remembered the incident.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 **Part 2 will be posted in a while, I accidentally deleted it and I have to start over again. I'll delete this when I finish and upload part 2and I... Have some things to say there. See you (hopefully) soon.**

 **And as a note, I'll be preemptively changing the rating to M but the "M chapter" is still a ways off from being finished.**


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